


A Date With Destiny--aka My Bodyguard

by SuperBaekTrash



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Angst, Angst ish, Baekhyun is soft, Bodyguard AU, Bottom Byun Baekhyun, ChanBaek - Freeform, Chanyeol is a hot piece of ass, Deep connections, Fingering, Fluff, Hiding of sexuality, Humor, Insecurities, Kidnapping, Loss of Virginity, M/M, Not out of the closet, Private School, Rich - Freeform, Rich Parents, Romance, Smut, Soft sex, Top Park Chanyeol, Tragedy, Underage Drinking, cbx are best friends, homophobic parents, sekai - Freeform, slowburn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-23
Updated: 2019-09-01
Packaged: 2020-01-24 08:31:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 45,464
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18567679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SuperBaekTrash/pseuds/SuperBaekTrash
Summary: Kim Baekhyun, son of high politician Kim Junmyeon, is being forced to have a bodyguard. He dreads it--until he sees what Park Chanyeol actually looks like. As they grow closer, they discover that their tragic pasts are intertwined.





	1. No Arguing

**Author's Note:**

> [Check out the mood board for this fic!](https://superbaektrash.tumblr.com/post/184380093316/mood-board-for-my-new-fanfic-a-date-with)
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> Yay! I'm finally publishing this! After a long time of working on this it's finally here!  
> I'll be publishing at least once a week so stay tuned!  
> I've been working really hard on this so I hope you guys enjoy!  
> HUGE thanks to my lovely Beta reader Mad <3 You're amazing and I love you! I couldn't have continued this story without you!

The first thing he heard were gunshots, then something scraped against the concrete. “Who’s there?” he called out. It was too dark to see anything, and he was only going by sound. “Is anyone—”

Another gunshot and suddenly he crumbled to the floor, a sharp pain in his leg keeping him from standing upright. He cried out in pain and moved his hand to where the sting was coming from, already knowing what he was going to feel. He hissed at touch.

“Help!” he yelled, but his voice came out hoarse and barely audible. “Please, someone help,” he whispered to himself, tears streaming down his face.  
Somewhere in front of him there was a menacing laugh. “There’s no one to save you…” a cruel voice said.

Baekhyun woke up in a cold sweat. His breathing was ragged as if his lungs couldn’t get enough air. He focused on slowing down his heartbeat and breathing.

Taking a deep breath, he looked around his room— _his room_ , he was still in his room, he was safe.

He tossed the covers aside and walked to the bathroom. Maybe splashing cold water on his face would get the nightmare out of his head.

He checked the time one his bedside table. _2:43_. He groaned.

Baekhyun turned the faucet on and let it run. He was too tired to go downstairs to get water or turn the TV on to distract himself, so he just opted for trying to go back to sleep.

He tossed and turned in bed for a few minutes before sleep finally returned to him.

 

.           .           .

 

“Good morning Baekhyun,” someone was saying but Baekhyun barely registered who it was.

“Get away,” Baekhyun muttered.

“Baekhyun, you have to wake up.” Someone began shaking him awake. “Baekhyun.”

He groaned and blinked his eyes open.

“Finally,” Kyungsoo, his sort-of-kind-of-but-not-really butler, muttered.

“What time is it?” Baekhyun asked.

“6:30,” Kyungsoo replied, “now get up, your parents are waiting on you to have breakfast.”

“Ugh, fine give me five minutes,” Baekhyun said.

Kyungsoo nodded. “But I’m coming back to check on you.”

“Yeah, yeah, I know.”

He sat up and got out of bed, trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes. He remembered the nightmare still, very vividly, almost as if it had actually happened.

He gave himself some quick slaps in the face hoping it would wake him up. Sighing, he reached for his robe and went downstairs. If his parents were still home that meant they had something to talk to him about—and chances were he probably wasn’t going to like it.

“Good morning Baekie, sleep well?” his mother greeted.

He shrugged.

“Good morning Baekhyun,” his father said, taking a sip from his coffee.

“Good morning,” Baekhyun replied. “Anything important happening today?” he asked, more to create conversation than actual curiosity.

“Just the usual meeting with the president,” his father replied casually.

Baekhyun wasn’t surprised.

“Baekhyun, sit down please, we need to talk,” his father said.

“I figured.”

“Sweetie, your father and I have made a decision,” his mother began. Baekhyun didn’t like her tone.

“We’ve decided to finally hire a bodyguard for you,” his father finished.

“ _Why_? We’ve talked about this so many times—”

“Don’t argue with me on this,” his father snapped. “You are getting a bodyguard period; I don’t want any complaints.”

Baekhyun shrunk back in his seat. His father never spoke to him that way.

“Junmyeon dear, calm down, no need to get angry,” his mother said.

His father took a deep breath. “I’m sorry Baekhyun, it’s just—I should’ve done it a long time ago.”

“Dad, I can defend myself, I don’t need someone to protect me,” Baekhyun said.

“ _No_ , nothing you say will change my mind. Now go upstairs and get ready for school,” his father said and waved a hand, dismissing him.

“But—” One look from his father kept him from saying what he was going to.

“Kyungsoo, go with him to make sure he doesn’t run off.”

Kyungsoo nodded and followed Baekhyun out.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun threw another shirt out of the drawer. “Ugh, I can’t find any of my uniforms!”

“Let me look…” Kyungsoo said.

Baekhyun groaned.

Not even two minutes later Kyungsoo emerged from Baekhyun’s closet with freshly pressed uniform pants and blazer. “Found it.”

Baekhyun opened his mouth to complain but Kyungsoo already started, “It was on the last rack. I’ll go pick up your others from the dry cleaners today, now go get ready.”

“Thank you,” Baekhyun singsonged before taking the uniform from Kyungsoo and then locking himself in the bathroom. 

He started on his usual morning routine of cleansers and face masks, only finishing what must’ve been 10 minutes later—as always.

“Baekhyun? Are you almost done? You’re going to be late,” Kyungsoo said from the other side of the door.

“I’m coming, just give me one more minute,” Baekhyun said and spritzed some perfume before walking out.

“Ready?” Kyungsoo asked once he stepped out of the bathroom.

Baekhyun nodded.

“I will be taking you to school today and your new bodyguard will be picking you up,” Kyungsoo said.

Baekhyun groaned. “Don’t remind me... Let’s just go.”

They walked down the stairs in silence and headed for the garage.

As Kyungsoo was opening the door, Baekhyun’s mom called out to him. “Baekie, sweetie, please don’t be upset with your father, we just want you to be safe,” his mother said.

“Safe from what? Nothing’s going to happen to me,” Baekhyun said.

“There are bad people out there in this world Baekie, we can never be sure.”

“He should’ve at least asked my opinion before he got me a fucking _bodyguard_.”

His mother raised an eyebrow. “And what would you have said if he did?”

Baekhyun sighed. “I would’ve said no…”

“Then there you go. Just… let him cool off for a bit, you know how he gets this time of the year. Give him some time and maybe he’ll consider taking the bodyguard back. But for now just cooperate okay Baekie?”

Baekhyun nodded.

“Good, now go or else you’ll be late.”

 

.           .           .

 

The ride to school was quiet, Baekhyun surprisingly not in the mood to talk. Kyungsoo stopped the car in front of the school for Baekhyun to get off.

“Your bodyguard’s name is Park Chanyeol, he’ll be waiting for you in the parking lot after practice,” Kyungsoo said. “Here is his number in case you can’t find him.” Kyungsoo handed him a piece of paper with the name _Park Chanyeol_ and a phone number delicately written on it. “Have a good day.”

“Thanks,” was all Baekhyun said and moved away from the car.

He walked quietly to his and Minseok’s usual spot before school started, where the elder was already waiting.

“Good morning,” Minseok said in a cheery voice, looking up from his phone.

“Ugh, not a good morning,” Baekhyun said as he leaned against the wall next to Minseok.

Minseok pouted. “Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed…”

“Shouldn’t’ve woken up at all,” Baekhyun muttered.

“Why? What happened?” Minseok asked.

They began walking down the hallway to their respective classrooms. “My dad hired a bodyguard for me,” Baekhyun said.

“But I thought you guys agreed that you didn’t need one,” Minseok said.

“Apparently not…”

“Now what? Have you met him—or her—yet?”

“ _Him_. No, not yet, I just know that his name is Park Chanyeol and he’s picking me up after practice today.”

“Mmm…”

“Are you—”

“ _Kim Baekhyun if you are in the building please report to the front office_ ,” someone called over the intercom. All eyes fell on Baekhyun.

Baekhyun groaned. “What is it now?” he muttered to himself. “I’ll see you at lunch,” he said to Minseok.

“Alright, see you.”

Baekhyun waved a quick bye and headed down the hall.

“I’m here,” he announced as he opened the doors to the front office.

“Good morning Baekhyun,” the secretary said.

“Good morning. Why was I called here?”

“We have a new student whom you may already know, and the principal would like you to show him around,” she replied, “he’ll be out in a minute, you’re welcome to take a seat while you wait.”

Baekhyun nodded and took a seat by the door.

A few minutes after he’d sat down, the door to the principal’s office opened and a familiar face stepped out.

“Jongdae! Hey!” Baekhyun said, getting up to greet his friend. “What brings you to SMTown High?”

Jongdae shrugged. “My dad thought I needed to change schools.”

“Oh well, what the president says goes right?”

Jongdae chuckled. “Yeah, it does.”

“I’m so glad you two get along,” the principal said. “Baekhyun, please show Jongdae around and go through his schedule with him.”

Baekhyun nodded. “Yes ma’am. Come on Jongdae, we’ll start at the main entrance.”  
Jongdae nodded and followed Baekhyun out.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun suffered through the first half of his day then headed to lunch to meet with Minseok and Jongdae.

Baekhyun spotted Jongdae first, coming out of the lunch line with a plate of food. He waved his friend down and gestured for him to follow him to the table where Minseok was sitting waiting for Baekhyun.

“Minseok, this is my friend Jongdae, he just transferred here,” Baekhyun explained.

“We’ve already met, he’s in my class,” Minseok said as the two sat down. “Nice to see you again Jongdae. I didn’t know you two knew each other.”

“He’s the president’s son, I’m the president’s advisor’s son—we see each other a lot,” Baekhyun explained.

“I _knew_ I’d seen you before,” Minseok said.

Jongdae shrugged. “A lot of people have.”

“Do you have practice today?” Minseok asked, turning to Baekhyun.

“Yeah, until 6,” Baekhyun replied. “You?”

“Same.”

“What do you guys play?” Jongdae asked.

“I play football he plays baseball,” Baekhyun said. “Do you play any sports?”

“Baseball,” Jongdae said. “Do you think the coach will let me on the team?”

“It depends, how good are you?” Minseok asked.

“Pretty good…”

“Then probably, just swing by the field today and I’ll talk to Coach.”

“Okay cool.”

“How do you like it here so far?” Baekhyun asked, wanting to keep the conversation going.

“It’s nice, I like it better than my other school,” Jongdae replied.

“That’s good,” Minseok said. “Met anyone new?”

“I’ve talked to a few people, no one too interesting…”

Baekhyun was about to ask another question when he felt two hands on his shoulders.

“Hey Baekie.”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes.

“Hey Baozi,” Luhan said, ruffling Minseok’s hair.

“Hey Luhan,” they muttered.

Luhan took a seat across from them. “You coming to practice?” he asked Minseok.

“Of course. Why?” Minseok replied.

Luhan smirked. “No reason…”

Baekhyun and Minseok exchanged looks.

“Okay…” Minseok said.

A girl came up to Luhan and promptly sat on his lap.

“Hey babe,” he said and kissed her.

Baekhyun, Minseok, and Jongdae looked at each other uncomfortably.

“This doesn’t happen often,” Baekhyun whispered to Jongdae.

“For the most part,” Minseok added.

Luhan and the girl were getting a little too handsy for anyone to be comfortable, but it was only when Luhan let out a moan that Minseok said, “Really? Right in front of my salad?”

The two lovers broke apart.

“Sorry Baozi, am I making you uncomfortable?” Luhan said.

Minseok rolled his eyes. “Can you please make out with your girlfriend somewhere else?”

Luhan smirked. “Anything for you Baozi, but you might wanna get used to it…”

“What? Why?” Minseok asked but Luhan was already walking away. “Why does he have to be so cryptic?”

“I’m sorry about him,” Baekhyun said, “his name is Luhan, he can be…”

“An asshole,” Minseok finished.

“I was going to say a little snobby but that works too,” Baekhyun said.

“It’s fine, there were guys like him at my old school,” Jongdae said.

Baekhyun checked his phone. “Lunch is almost over; we’ll talk more later?”

“Yeah, we’ll meet up after school,” Jongdae said.

“Alright, you two have fun, we’ll see each other later,” Baekhyun said.

“See you Baek,” Minseok said.

“See you,” Jongdae said.

 

.           .           .

 

At the sound of the last bell, Baekhyun shoved his things in his bag and hurried to the locker room for practice.

As usual, he was one of the first few to get there; he went to his locker and quickly got changed into his practice clothes.

The locker room was still relatively empty by the time he was done changing, so Baekhyun took advantage of the quiet locker room and laid down on a bench to take a nap.

He was almost falling asleep when he heard something bang against the lockers followed by a series of giggles.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. _Great, someone brought their girlfriend into the locker room_ , again.

He sat up and looked around expecting to find a young girl pushed up against a locker with her hands all over a football or baseball player but what he saw took him completely by surprise.

Kim Jongin—better known as Kai—co-captain of the baseball team was being held up against the lockers by Oh Sehun, captain of the baseball team, while the two of them made out like no one was watching—which is probably what they thought.

Baekhyun cleared his throat to make his presence known.

Kai and Sehun stopped kissing and turned towards him.

Kai blushed. “I-I’m sorry, we didn’t know you were in here,” he said.

“No, it’s fine, you guys do your thing,” Baekhyun said.

Sehun wrapped his arm around Kai’s waist. “Have you been sitting there long?” he asked.

Baekhyun shook his head.

Sehun shrugged. “Whatever, it’s not like it’s a secret,” he said and planted a small kiss on Kai’s cheek, making him blush again.

“Really?” Baekhyun asked.

Kai and Sehun exchanged looks.

“Yes?” Sehun said. “Why would it be a secret?”

Baekhyun shrugged. “I don’t know, forget I asked.”

The rest of the team arrived in one giant wave and their conversation was cut short, fortunately for Baekhyun.

No one caught on to the awkward tension inside the locker room as they walked in and practice ran smoothly afterwards.

 

.           .           .

 

Sweaty and exhausted, Baekhyun dragged himself out of the locker room after getting his stuff and headed to the parking lot to look for his new bodyguard. He groaned at the thought. Maybe he should just run away instead of having to face whoever this _Park Chanyeol_ was.

The parking lot was mostly empty, only a few cars belonging to the remaining football and baseball players. Baekhyun scanned the lot looking for someone old and fat standing by one of his father’s sleek black cars, instead he only saw a young and _extremely_ _handsome_ man in a cleanly-cut suit standing by a black car.

“ _No way_ …” Baekhyun muttered to himself.


	2. My New Bodyguard is a Hottie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun met his new bodyguard and he has some thoughts on him

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surpriiiise!!! Here's another chapter a bit early! This one's another short one but they'll get longer soon I promise!

Baekhyun dropped his bags and fished the slip of paper containing Park Chanyeol’s number out of his pocket. He typed the number into his phone and dialed, his eyes never leaving the gorgeous man in the suit.

For a second Baekhyun thought he had been mistaken and that the young and handsome man was _not_ his bodyguard, but after one ring into his ear Baekhyun saw the man take his cellphone out of his pocket and put it up to his ear.

“Park Chanyeol speaking,” the person on the other side of the line said. And so did the man in the suit, if Baekhyun had read his lips right.

“Hi, this is Kim Baekhyun.”

“Baekhyun I am here to pick you up.”

“Excellent,” Baekhyun said. “I think I see you, wave your hand in the air.”

The man in the suit waved his hand. Baekhyun’s heart skipped a beat.

“Yeah, I see you. Don’t move I’ll be right there.” Baekhyun collected his things and walked to his very handsome new bodyguard.

He took Baekhyun’s things from his hands and swiftly placed them in the trunk.

“Hello Baekhyun, I am Park Chanyeol,” he said, followed by a quick bow.

“Just Baekhyun is fine, no need for formalities,” Baekhyun said with a smile.

“I’d rather remain professional,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun shrugged. “Alright then. Let’s get going.” He reached for the passenger door but Chanyeol opened the backseat door before he could.

He gestured for Baekhyun to go inside. “If you wouldn’t mind.”

“Sorry, just used to riding in the front,” Baekhyun lied. He’d hoped he’d get to sit next to Chanyeol, but as Baekhyun was quickly learning, Park Chanyeol liked to keep things formal.

Baekhyun got into the car and waited for Chanyeol to join him.

Two minutes into the car ride, Baekhyun decided to open his mouth. “How old are you Chanyeol? If you don’t mind me asking.”

“25,” Chanyeol replied.

“So young… What made you want to be a bodyguard at this age?”

“Personal reasons I’d rather not disclose,” Chanyeol said.

Park Chanyeol didn’t like talking apparently. Baekhyun decided to keep his mouth shut.

 

.           .           .

 

“How do you like your new bodyguard?” his father asked at dinner.

“He’s not too bad…” Baekhyun admitted.

“I knew you’d like him,” his father said. “And he won’t intrude in your personal business, which I know is important to you.”

“It won’t be as bad as you imagined Baekie,” his mother added.

Baekhyun played with the broccoli on his plate. “I guess not…” He just wished Chanyeol was a bit more… _lively_.

“Your mother and I will be going out of the country on Wednesday on business so Chanyeol will be staying overnight with you while we’re gone, is that alright with you?”

“That’s fine,” he answered a bit too quickly.

“Alright then, I’ll inform Chanyeol and have the staff prepare a room for him on Wednesday,” his father said.

Baekhyun nodded. “May I be dismissed?”

His father nodded.

“Goodnight,” Baekhyun called as he exited the dining room before running up to his room. He hadn’t told Minseok about his stunning new bodyguard yet.

The phone rang three times before Minseok answered.

“Hey,” Minseok said once he picked up. “I’m in the middle of dinner but go ahead.”

“Okay so, remember when I said my new bodyguard was picking me up after school?” Baekhyun said.

“Mmmhhh, the one you wouldn’t stop complaining about,” Minseok said around a mouthful of food.

“Minseok, he’s hot! Like, _really_ hot,” Baekhyun blurted.

“Ew, like in a he’s-old-enough-to-be-my-dad-but-he’s-hot kind of way?”

“Ew, no. He’s 25,” Baekhyun said.

“Shit, really? How come?”

“I don’t know…” Baekhyun said. “He seems like the quiet type.”

“Why? Did you bombard him with questions but he wouldn’t give you a reply?”

“ _No_ , I only asked him like two questions and he didn’t seem too keen on answering them.”

“Now I want to meet him,” Minseok said.

“You’ll see him tomorrow when he drops me off,” Baekhyun said, barely able to contain the glee from his voice.

“How’s all that going to work out anyway? Is he going to drop you off and pick you up every day or…?”  
“Something like that, and on weekends he’ll accompany me if I want to go out of the house,” Baekhyun explained.

“Ah, I see… Well I gotta go take a shower, I _stink_.”

“I was going to say, I can smell you all the way from my house,” Baekhyun teased.

“Haha, very funny. I’ll talk to you later.”

“Yeah, okay.”

“Bye.”

“Bye.”

Baekhyun laid down on his bed and stared at the celling. Karma was definitely on his side for him to have gotten a bodyguard as good-looking as Chanyeol—maybe his personality could use a few improvements, but Baekhyun could fix that. He suddenly didn’t mind the idea of Chanyeol following him around all the time—in fact, he quite liked it. He pictured himself walking around the mall, looking for something to spend his money on, Chanyeol not even three feet away; he would enter Dior, one of his favorites, and ask Chanyeol for his opinion on everything he tried on. Chanyeol would start getting bored until Baekhyun forced him to try on clothes as well…

Baekhyun must’ve fallen asleep thinking of Chanyeol and was woken up by the sound of his phone ringing. He fumbled with the answer button before putting his phone up to his ear.

“Hello,” he said.

“I’m back,” Minseok said, “were you sleeping?”

Baekhyun rubbed his eyes. “I think so, how long ago did I call you?”

“Like, two hours,” Minseok replied.

“ _Shit_ ,” Baekhyun muttered. “I slept a lot then.”

“You never take naps, what happened? Did you not sleep well at night?”

“No, I had a nightmare—again.”

“Is it always the same one?” Minseok asked.

“Yeah…”

“Maybe it’s because it’s getting close to the anniversary of—”

“I know Minseok, I think that too,” Baekhyun snapped.

“Sorry.”

Baekhyun sighed. “Don’t apologize, I’m sorry I snapped, you’re just trying to help.”

“Baek, you know that I’m here for you right? If you want to talk, I’m all ears.”

He knew that. “Thanks Minseok. I just—I-I don’t want to talk about it.”

“That’s okay too—let’s talk about something else then, got any other news?”

Baekhyun thought for a moment. “Well…there was this one thing that happened in the locker room today…” He wasn’t planning on mentioning it, but Minseok _had_ asked.

“Oooh, what? Did someone fight?”

“More like the opposite,” Baekhyun said.

“Hmm?”

“It was Kai and Sehun… they were—”

“Making out, yeah.” Minseok groaned. “They couldn’t keep their hands off of each other during practice.”

“You don’t approve?” Baekhyun asked hesitantly.

“What? Of their relationship? No, nothing’s wrong with it, I mean they’re pretty cute together, but it’s—ugh forget it.”

Baekhyun hesitated. “So you don’t think anything’s wrong with them being… _gay_?”

“Baekhyun, why would I? If Sehun wants to date Sooyong he can, if he wants to date Kai he’s more than welcome! I don’t care that they’re gay.”

Baekhyun felt weight lifted off of his shoulders. Maybe he could tell Minseok… _eventually_.

“Why the worry Baek?”

“N-no reason, j-just curious.”

“Whatever you say…”

“Hey, um, I gotta go, need to finish some homework. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Sounds good,” Minseok said. “Don’t go to bed so late, and take a sleeping pill if you feel like it’ll help.”

“Yeah, yeah, I will, bye-bye.” Just because Minseok was a year older than Baekhyun he felt like he was responsible for Baekhyun, it got annoying sometimes—but secretly, Baekhyun loved it.

“Bye.”

Baekhyun ended the call and plugged his phone into the charger before it died on him. It was almost 9:30, far from the usual time he went to bed, but he decided to take Minseok’s advice and go to bed early—and maybe it would help with the nightmares, at least, he hoped.


	3. A Sudden Change in Attitude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As he thrashes and screams from another horrid nightmare, Baekhyun is surprised by the care of the person waking him up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, this one is a bit longer! The story is starting to pick up and I hope you guys are enjoying it so far! 
> 
> A/N As you guys may have noticed (or you will in this chapter) this is a very dialogue-driven story

He woke up thrashing and screaming, his sheets soaked with sweat. Hair sticking to his forehead; there were hands on his shoulders shaking him awake.

“Baekhyun! Baekhyun wake up!”

As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he was able to make out his father’s face; the long nose, the thick eyebrows, plump lips.

“Dad,” he whispered.

His father wrapped his arms around him. “I’m here Baek, I’m here.”

Tears filled his eyes and rolled down his cheek onto his father’s shoulder.

“They killed me dad, they shot me and left me in an alley to rot.”

His father rubbed soothing circles onto his back. “No one’s going to hurt you Baekhyun, you’re safe.”

Baekhyun sobbed quietly onto his father’s shoulder while his father whispered words of assurance to him.

Once the tears had stopped coming Baekhyun wiped his face and detached himself from his father.

“Baek, you’re safe, I promise. Chanyeol will protect you.”

The thought of Chanyeol—tall and handsome Chanyeol—protecting him brought butterflies to his stomach.

“You hear me? Nothing’s going to happen to you.”

Baekhyun nodded.

“Alright, good. Now go to bed, you have a whole day ahead of you.”

He nodded again.

His father stood up and placed a kiss on his head. “Good night Baekie.”

He headed towards the door but Baekhyun stopped him. “Wait.”

His father turned.

“Can you stay here until I fall asleep?” For a second Baekhyun thought his father would scoff at him for acting like a child, but he simply walked back to the bed and laid beside Baekhyun.

His father stroked his head and he felt his eyelids grow heavy again.

The last thing he remembered was his father whispering one last “Good night” before falling asleep.

 

.           .           .

 

When he woke up again his father was gone and Kyungsoo was opening the blinds as usual.

“Sleep well Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo asked.

Baekhyun shrugged. “Could’ve been better…”

“Your father already left, he said he had an important meeting to get to.”

Of course he did.

“There is breakfast on the table for you,” Kyungsoo continued. “And Chanyeol should be here in,” he checked his watch, “10 minutes.” Baekhyun’s heart skipped a beat.

“Why so early?”

“Your father has asked that I go over your schedule with him,” Kyungsoo replied.

“Mmmm…” Baekhyun feigned disinterest. “Get my uniform ready for me please.”

Kyungsoo nodded and extended Baekhyun his robe.

Baekhyun toyed with his breakfast while mulling over the previous night’s events. His father had acted so unlike himself; it was rare that he showed his caring side, at least not since… Baekhyun shook the thought from his head, he didn’t want to think about that.

He stabbed a cube of tofu with his chopstick and raised it to his mouth, but right as it touched his tongue the doorbell rang. He dropped his chopstick onto the table and jumped up. “I got it!” he yelled.

He hurried to the front door, already knowing who it would be.

He unlocked the door and swung it open. “Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol bowed. “Baekhyun.”

“Come in, please.” He stepped aside for Chanyeol. “I’m not ready yet but Kyungsoo said he had to talk to you while you wait.”

Chanyeol nodded.

“Just wait one moment, I’ll go get him.” Baekhyun trod up the stairs hurriedly towards his room.

“KYUNGSOO! CHANYEOL IS HERE!” he yelled halfway down the hall.

“I’m coming,” Kyungsoo replied, coming out of Baekhyun’s room. “Your clothes are on your bed.”

“Thank you,” Baekhyun said as he passed by him.

Kyungsoo had laid out his uniform on his bed for him, letting him decide what tie he wanted to wear. He picked the one closest to him and changed.

He rushed through his morning routine and finished in a record time of 7 minutes. He grabbed his bag and ran downstairs.

Kyungsoo appeared to have finished his conversation with Chanyeol and the two of them were standing by the door waiting for him.

“All done?” he asked.

They both nodded.

“Let’s get going then,” Baekhyun said with a smile.

Chanyeol took his bag from him and led him outside.

 

.           .           .

 

Minseok was waiting out front like Baekhyun had told him to, eyes filled with curiosity.

Baekhyun stepped out and waited for Chanyeol.

Minseok’s mouth opened slightly at the sight of the tall man.

“Your bag,” Chanyeol said.

“Chanyeol, this is Kim Minseok, my best friend.”

Chanyeol bowed. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise…” Minseok said.

“Do you know when to pick me up?” Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol nodded.

“Alright then, I’ll see you later,” Baekhyun said.

“Have a good day Baekhyun,” was all Chanyeol said before getting in the car and departing.

“So stiff…” Minseok muttered once he was gone.

“I _know_ ,” Baekhyun whined, “would it kill him to at least smile?”

“You’ve known him for like 12 hours, give him some time. You just need to get to know each other more,” Minseok said.

They turned and started walking to their usual spot.

“There’ll be plenty of time for that when he spends the night on Wednesday…” Baekhyun said with a devilish grin.

“Oh boy…” Minseok muttered. “Why is he staying over?”

“Dad’s going out of the country,” Baekhyun explained, Minseok knew the drill.

“Well lucky you then,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun wiggled his eyebrows. “Exactly…”

“Just don’t harass the man Baekhyun,” Minseok said.

“I wasn’t going to!”

Minseok rose an eyebrow. “Kim Baekhyun, _I know you_.”

Baekhyun sighed. “Okay, fine, I’ll leave him alone—unless he wants to watch a movie with me.”

Minseok rolled his eyes. “Just don’t watch _The Greatest Showman_ again, you sing _every single song_ , it gets annoying.”

“But that’s like, _the greatest movies of all time_ ,” Baekhyun whined.

“Good morning,” Jongdae said, joining them as they walked down the hallway, cutting off Baekhyun’s whining.

“How was the rest of your day yesterday?” Baekhyun asked.

“Good,” Jongdae said. “Really good actually, the baseball coach let me on the team.”

“Speaking of that,” Minseok said, “you’re _really_ good Jongdae, maybe even better than Sehun.”

Jongdae smiled sheepishly. “Thanks.”

“Luhan didn’t give you too much trouble, did he? He was a little jealous.”

Jongdae shrugged. “He wasn’t too bad.”

“What else do you have to tell me about your day? See anyone that caught your attention?” Baekhyun asked.

“Maybe…” Jongdae replied suggestively.

“Ooo, care to say who?”

“I’m not quite sure yet, so not now…”

Baekhyun eyed him careful. “Whatever you say…”

“But since you brought that up, what about—”

The school bell rang, cutting Jongdae off.

They all sighed.

“My class is that way,” Baekhyun said, gesturing to the other side of the hall. “I’ll catch up with you guys later.”

“See you,” Minseok and Jongdae both said with a quick wave.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun joined Jongdae and Minseok at their lunch table, setting his stuff down with a sigh.

“Tired already?” Minseok asked.

“ _Very_ ,” Baekhyun replied. “Didn’t get much sleep last night.”

“Yeah me neither,” Jongdae added, “my parents hired _another_ tutor just because I got a _B_ in calculous.”

“So annoying right? My dad did the same when I got a C on _one_ Chemistry paper,” Baekhyun said.

“That sounds like responsible parents problems,” Minseok said.

“You can’t relate?” Jongdae asked.

“Dad owns a casino, Mom’s a model,” Minseok explained.

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” Baekhyun agreed. “His life’s a paradise.”

“I wouldn’t say a _paradise_ ,” Minseok said.

“But close enough,” Baekhyun said.

“Yeah, whatever…”

“Jongdae, what were about to ask this morning before the bell rang?” Baekhyun asked.

“Oh, I was going to ask about those two guys on the baseball team, the ones that are dating,” Jongdae said.

Minseok groaned. “Kai and Sehun, the captains. They were sucking each other’s faces like every five seconds.”

“I thought it was cute, every time Kai had a good hit Sehun would give him a little kiss,” Jongdae said.

“Aw that’s pretty cute,” Baekhyun agreed.

“Kai’s pretty lucky to have a guy like Sehun,” Jongdae said. Baekhyun had already known about Jongdae being bi so he wasn’t surprised by his comment.

“Sehun’s honestly not that good of a kisser,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun’s chopstick froze half way to his mouth. “Come again?”

Minseok sighed. “Yes, I’ve kissed Sehun, okay? Not a big deal.”

“Wha—How?—When?—Minseok!”

“We were dating like, two weeks ago. It obviously didn’t last…”

“Minseok! Why didn’t you tell me?” Baekhyun said. “Why didn’t you tell me you were gay?”

“ _Bi_ ,” Minseok corrected, “I thought you already knew—I mean, I’m not your typical straight guy to begin with.”

Baekhyun pouted. “Still… You could’ve at least told me.”

“Sorry Baekie,” Minseok said. He picked up one of his kimbap’s and extended it to Baekhyun. “Forgive me?”

Baekhyun opened his mouth and Minseok placed the kimbap on his tongue. Baekhyun nodded as he chewed.

“What about you Baek? Anyone caught _your_ attention?”

Baekhyun sighed. “Not particularly…” he lied. There was someone that had _definitely_ caught his attention.

“Don’t you like Joy?” Minseok asked sarcastically, knowing fully well Baekhyun’s feelings towards the cheerleader. “You two always flirt during breaks between practice.”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes.

Minseok didn’t comment further, preferring to not add to Baekhyun’s mood.

“What are you guys quiet about?” came an unpleasant voice from behind.

They all groaned.

“Hello Luhan…” Minseok said.

Luhan took a seat across from them. “What a lovely trio you guys’ve formed.”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes.

“How’d you like practice yesterday?” Luhan asked Minseok.

Minseok took a deep breath. “It was fine. Why do you ask?” he said, although his tone suggested he already knew.

Luhan gave a one-shouldered shrug. “You and Sehun were pretty close.”

“We _were_ ,” Minseok said, “we broke up.” It was obvious Luhan put Minseok on edge.

“Luhan I think your friends are calling you,” Baekhyun said politely.

Luhan looked around. “Nah, I don’t think so.”

“That was my polite way of asking you to leave,” Baekhyun said, firmer this time.

Luhan sighed. “Fine, whatever, I’ll go. Bye Baozi, see you at practice,” he said with a wink and got up.

They all groaned once he was out of sight.

“Why is he such a dick to you?” Baekhyun asked.

“Well…”

“Minseok! What else aren’t you telling me?” Baekhyun protested.

“I had a crush on Luhan, a while back, but the asshole’s straight—I’ll let you imagine what happened when I tried to kiss him,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun and Jongdae both went “Oof” at the same time.

“Yeah, and ever since he’s tried to annoy me in every way possible.”

“What a dick,” Jongdae said.

“Tell me about it… I think he just does it because he doesn’t want to admit that he’s actually _not_ straight,” Minseok said.

Jongdae shrugged. “Could be…”

Baekhyun had only gotten halfway through his food but the bell rang and they all had to head to class.

 

.           .           .

 

“You’re here early Baekhyun,” Yixing said as he walked into the locker room.

“I’m always early Coach,” Baekhyun said.

“Why? Shouldn’t you be out there wasting time with the other guys?”

Baekhyun shrugged. “I just prefer the peace and quiet of an empty locker room—and guys can be pervs.”

Yixing chuckled. “Can’t disagree with you on that one. But since you’re here early come see me once you’re dressed, I have an errand for you to run.”

Baekhyun nodded and headed in the direction of his locker.

Once he was dressed, he returned to Yixing’s office.

“Yes Coach?”

Yixing extended a white envelope to him. “Please take this to the cheer coach, Taeyeon.”

Baekhyun took the envelope and nodded.

As Baekhyun approached the track surrounding the football field he noticed a number of girls spread out, stretching, talking to one another, running through what he assumed was their routine—and among them was Joy, of course.

He handed the coach the envelope saying it was from Coach Yixing and turned his face the other way as he passed by her, hoping to avoid a conversation with her. It wasn’t that he didn’t like her, he did, just not the way she “liked” him. Baekhyun got the feeling that every time he talked to her she was just trying to get into his pants.

He froze knowing he’d been spotted at the sound of a high-pitched squeal followed by “Baekhyun-oppa!”

He politely turned and begrudgingly approached her.

“What are you doing here?” she asked. Although she sounded genuinely interested, Baekhyun couldn’t help but think that she was being fake.

“Just came to drop off something for my coach,” he replied.

“Ah, I see. When is practice over today?”

“6 or so…” he replied. He began regretting having stopped to talk to her already.

“Do you want to grab a smoothie or something? This new place opened up by my house and I’ve been _dying_ to try it,” Joy said.

There was an excuse waiting at the tip of his tongue. “I’m really sorry Joy, I already promised Minseok that we would go look at his new car after practice. Maybe next time?” Although he hoped there would not be a next time.

“Aw, okay then. Next time.”

His prayers were answered when his coach called for him from the field, cutting his conversation short.

“Coming!” he called back and waved back at Joy before sprinting down the field.

 

.           .           .

 

Chanyeol was waiting in the same spot as the day before and helped Baekhyun with his things same as before.

“How was your day Chanyeol?” Baekhyun asked once they were both in the car.

“Good. And yours?” Chanyeol replied.

Baekhyun was surprised by his question. “It was okay, thank you for asking.”

Chanyeol replied with a small nod and stayed quiet afterwards.

Baekhyun pondered too much over whether or not he should ask another question and by the time he opened his mouth they were already home.

“Good afternoon Baekhyun,” Kyungsoo said as he entered the kitchen, “Chanyeol.”

“Good afternoon,” Chanyeol said.

“Would you like something to eat Chanyeol?” Kyungsoo asked, already preparing something for Baekhyun.

“No thank you,” Chanyeol said.

“If you change your mind just ask,” Kyungsoo said, and placed a bowl of kimchi in front of Baekhyun.

“Oooo, when did you make this?” Baekhyun asked picking up his chopsticks.

“My mother did, she made it just how you like it,” Kyungsoo replied.

“Not too spicy and not too salty?”

Kyungsoo nodded.

“Yum, tell her I said thank you,” Baekhyun said and dug in. “Sure you don’t want some Chanyeol? Kyungsoo’s mom makes the _best_ kimchi,” Baekhyun said in between bites.

“I’m sure,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

It didn’t take long for Baekhyun’s parents to get home and not much longer for Chanyeol to be dismissed for the day.

Baekhyun went up to his room to work on his homework. He hadn’t realized how much time had passed and only looked up from his papers when there was a light knock on the door.

“I’m coming,” Baekhyun called.

“Can I come in?” his father said, poking his head through the door.

“Oh, yeah, sorry I thought it was Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun said.

“How was your day?” his father asked.

“Good, I guess,” Baekhyun replied. It was unusual for his father to even talk to him let alone ask him how his day was.

He sat at the edge of Baekhyun’s bed. “Do you want to talk, about what happened last night?”

Baekhyun shook his head slightly.

“Sure?”

Baekhyun wordlessly sat beside his father on the bed.

“Has it been happening often?” his father asked hesitantly.

Baekhyun nodded.

His father sighed. “I’d be lying if I said it hasn’t been happening to me too. It’ll pass.”

Baekhyun scooted closer to his father.

His father hesitantly wrapped his arms around Baekhyun. “Oh, Baekie, I’m sorry this is happening to you.”

Baekhyun liked feeling the warmth of his father’s embrace, something he rarely felt nowadays.

“Do you just want me to hold you?”

Baekhyun nodded against his father’s neck.

“I’m going to be a more caring father from now on, I promise.”

They stayed in silence for a few minutes.

“Do you want to eat dinner? Kyungsoo made bulgogi,” his father asked.

Baekhyun nodded silently.

“Let’s go then before it gets cold.”

They stood up and went downstairs together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Another chapter! This time a bit longer! The next chapters is when things start getting interesting... Please anticipate it! Next Sunday! Mark your calendars!  
> Leave your thoughts below and I'll love to talk to you! ;)


	4. Tired and Pouty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun's tired, he eats

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo this is kind of a really short chapter and not much goes on but please enjoy it! I'll probably post another one in the middle of the week.. My beta says the next chapter is one of her favorites!

Kyungsoo brought him his breakfast to his room the next morning since his parents had left early in the morning. “All of your uniforms are clean and pressed, I finally got around to picking them up at the dry cleaners,” he informed as Baekhyun ate his eggs.

Baekhyun just hummed his approval as he ate.

“Great,” Baekhyun said, “I want the bow tie today. Lay it on the bed I’m going to shower real quick.”

Kyungsoo nodded. “It’s supposed to be warm outside today so I won’t get out the vest today.”

Having finished eating Baekhyun locked himself in his bathroom and turned on the shower to as hot as his skin could handle.

He’d had another nightmare; slightly different this time, in addition to him being shot and left for dead in an alley, he had been naked and freezing.

In the shower, he scrubbed his skin clean although there was no dirt on it. Even so he could feel the sharp pebbles under is thighs, his butt, his hands, the blood from his wound mixing with the dirt on the ground. He couldn’t tell what was tears what was droplets of water as he stood under the shower. He kept his sobs quiet for sake of not worrying Kyungsoo and only turned the water off when he was sure there were no more tears coming.

As he wrapped himself in his towel there was a knock on the door. “Everything okay Baekhyun?” came Kyungsoo’s voice.

“Fine,” Baekhyun replied.

“I got your uniform out for you, it’s on your bed.”

“Thank you Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun said.

“I’ll be downstairs if you need me.”

Chanyeol was already waiting in the car by the time Baekhyun got downstairs, running quite a bit late.

“I’m here, I’m here,” he called as he got into the car. “Sorry, got a little carried away with my shower,” he said—which might not have been the most appropriate thing to say but Baekhyun didn’t exactly _mind_ Chanyeol picturing him in the shower.

“It’s fine,” was all Chanyeol said.

 

.           .           .

 

“So how’s the new bodyguard?” Minseok asked once they met in the hallway.

“Still cold… _Well_ , he asked me how my day was yesterday,” Baekhyun said.

“That’s… _progress_ …” Minseok said.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “Yeah, _right_ …”

“You need to have patience Baek,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun pouted.

“Good morning,” Jongdae greeted.

“Morning,” Minseok and Baekhyun replied.

“What are you two talking about?” Jongdae asked.

“Baekhyun’s impatience,” Minseok said.

Jongdae chuckled. “Any particular reason why?”

“It’s my new bodyguard, he’s so cold and never wants to talk,” Baekhyun explained.

“You’ve literally known him for like, two days,” Minseok said.

“If your bodyguard is from the same agency as mine, don’t take it personal, they’re instructed to keep it professional. It took me a while to break the mold that my bodyguard had been put into,” Jongdae said.

Baekhyun groaned.

“Just let him get comfortable around you,” Minseok said.

“But I don’t want to wait,” Baekhyun whined.

“Who’s your bodyguard?” Jongdae asked.

“His name’s Park Chanyeol.”

“Ah, okay, I know who that is. He’s pretty cool; he was serving as a trainee during one of my dad’s press conferences about a year ago.”

Baekhyun was suddenly more interested. “Oooo, what can you tell me about him?”

Jongdae shrugged. “I mean, I don’t know him _that_ well, I only met him a few times and from those times I didn’t really get to learn that much about him. I just know he plays the piano and some other instrument and that he likes to cook.”

Baekhyun took mental notes. “Mmmm, I see. Thanks.”

“No problem.”

“Changing the subject, let’s sit outside today,” Minseok said, “it’s supposed to be nice outside later.”

“I was gonna suggest that anyways so sure,” Baekhyun said.

“Yeah let’s do that,” Jongdae agreed.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun was practically dragging himself out of the locker room from how tired he was—all because some dicks decided to be assholes and mess with the cheerleaders. Hatred radiated from the entire team after they had been forced to run ten laps thanks to their stupidity.

Chanyeol caught his eye at the edge of the parking lot and rushed over to him to help.

“Rough day?” Chanyeol asked.

“Don’t get me started,” Baekhyun said, heart still racing a bit.

With Baekhyun’s things on his shoulder they walked back to the car.

“Would you like some water?” Chanyeol asked once they were in the car.

“Please,” Baekhyun replied.

Chanyeol extended his unopened water bottle and watched Baekhyun drown the entire thing in one gulp.

Baekhyun wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and tossed the bottle aside.

Chanyeol was quiet the rest of the way home as usual.

“Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun called right as he walked through the door.

“Yes Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo said.

“Prepare a really hot bath for me—and put whatever soaps and salts in it that’ll help with sore muscles—now,” Baekhyun ordered.

Kyungsoo nodded and headed upstairs without further comments.

Baekhyun walked to the fridge and dug out the container of kimchi. He picked up two chopsticks from the drying rack and began eating it straight from the box, all the while Chanyeol stood in the corner quietly.

“Want some?” Baekhyun asked around a mouthful.

Chanyeol shook his head.

Baekhyun sighed internally. Of course he didn’t. He attempted small talk. “You know Kim Jongdae? The president’s son?”

Chanyeol nodded. “I worked for his father for a period of time.”

Jongdae’s story checked out.

“He’s a good friend of mine. Did you get to know him well?” Baekhyun pushed.

“Not particularly,” Chanyeol replied.

“Well I know him pretty well, he’s a nice guy. Wouldn’t you agree?”

Chanyeol only nodded.

Baekhyun sighed. It was going to be hard cracking his shell.

“Baekhyun! Your bath is ready!” Kyungsoo called from upstairs.

“Coming!” Baekhyun replied. He put the kimchi back in the fridge and threw his chopsticks in the sink. “Make yourself at home,” he said to Chanyeol and left the kitchen.

Baekhyun’s bathroom looked and felt like a sauna from the amount of steam inside.

“The water’s pretty hot, careful not to burn yourself,” Kyungsoo warned.

“Thank you Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun said.

Kyungsoo nodded and closed the door as he exited the bathroom to give Baekhyun his privacy.

Baekhyun wasted no time in shedding off his clothes and sinking into the steaming bathtub. The water was very hot as Kyungsoo had said but Baekhyun was in no mood whatsoever to care.

Kyungsoo must’ve put in some calming bath salts into the water because Baekhyun fell asleep within five minutes.

He woke up to light knocking on the door.

“Baekhyun? Baekhyun are you in there?” came Chanyeol’s voice.

Baekhyun perked up. “I’m in here,” he replied.

“Kyungsoo is almost done with dinner, he told me to call you,” Chanyeol said.

“Give me like, five minutes,” Baekhyun said.

“Take your time, I’ll tell Kyungsoo you’ll be down soon.”

“Alright,” Baekhyun said.

He listened for Chanyeol’s retreating steps before stepping out of the tub.

His hands were all wrinkly from staying in the water too long; he hated when that happened.

He drained the tub and stepped into the shower for a more thorough wash.

Baekhyun shivered at the cold water hitting his skin but waited for his body to adjust to it instead of turning it too hot. He was still exhausted, but he felt more relaxed at least.

The smell of Kyungsoo’s cooking filled the house, as it usually did. _Bibimbap_ , Baekhyun guessed.

The kitchen table was set with one plate when he arrived. He pouted. “ _Soo_ , you know I hate eating alone.”

Kyungsoo sighed. “Baekhyun…”

Baekhyun put on his puppy face.

Kyungsoo tried resisting but he never could. “Fine, fine, I’ll eat with you.”

Baekhyun turned to Chanyeol, still with his puppy face. “Will you eat with me too Chanyeol?”

Chanyeol looked like he was debating it.

“…Please?”

Chanyeol sighed. Another win for Baekhyun’s puppy face. “Of course Baekhyun.”

Kyungsoo set two more places on the table and they all sat down to eat.

“Thank you for the meal Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun said.

“You’re welcome,” Kyungsoo said. “Now dig in.”

There was no time for talking as all three of them devoured the bibimbap in under 10 minutes.

There was a sigh of content from Chanyeol.

“ _Really_ good, right?” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol nodded. “How did you learn how to cook so well?” He asked Kyungsoo.

“Some of it from my mom and the rest from the Seoul School of Culinary Arts,” Kyungsoo replied.

“Kyungsoo got a master’s degree there _and_ he’s the co-owner of Ja-Ja-Myeon,” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol’s jaw dropped. Everyone knew Ja-Ja-Myeon, it was _the_ most popular restaurant in all of Gangnam; people either waited in line for hours to get a table or reserved _weeks_ in advance.

“You’re the owner of Ja-Ja-Myeon?” Chanyeol asked, mouth still agape.

“ _Co_ -owner,” Baekhyun corrected, “it wasn’t named after Jun _myeon_ for no reason.”

“Ahh, that makes sense…” Chanyeol said.

“Speaking of Ja-Ja, that reminds me, I have a presentation to get to in…” Kyungsoo looked at the clock, “half an hour, so if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be on my way.”

“Go ahead, Chanyeol and I’ll clean up,” Baekhyun said. “Thanks again for the food.”

Kyungsoo bowed a quick goodbye and left.

“I do the dishes you put everything away?” Baekhyun asked.

“I’ll do the dishes, you know where everything goes,” Chanyeol said; it was the most he’d heard Chanyeol say since he’d met him.

“Sure, I’ll dry them while you go shower, I imagine you want to,” Baekhyun said. He didn’t want Chanyeol to be doing all the work.

“No, it’s fine, if we work together we’ll get done in less time,” Chanyeol insisted.

Baekhyun nodded and they both got to work.

In almost no time the kitchen was cleaned spotless and they were both headed upstairs.

“Thank you Chanyeol,” Baekhyun said.

“No need to thank me,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun was going to add a _“But I want to”_ but he thought better of it and instead only nodded and made for his bedroom, which was only two doors down from Chanyeol’s.

He hoped there were no more nightmares.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always thanks for reading and please leave comments down below! I love replying to you guys and finding out what you guys are thinking of it so far!


	5. Chanyeol the Fairy Godmother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chanyeol is good at his job, and Baekhyun likes that

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alrighty! This is one of my beta's favorite chapters!   
> A little bit longer than the last, and definitely more important--exciting things ahead!

Hoping never did anyone any good.

His voice was hoarse from screaming yet no one had heard him. He was naked and alone in a cold alley, slowly dying from a gunshot wound. No one was coming to rescue him, he just had to accept it, but he wouldn’t, he just kept screaming—

The next thing he knew he was being shaken awake by strong hands on his shoulders. “Baekhyun! Baekhyun wake up! You’re safe!”

Chanyeol.

Baekhyun took deep breaths and clasped his hands around Chanyeol’s forearms for reassurance.

“Ch-Chan-Chanyeol,” Baekhyun sputtered, his brain not being able to keep up with the emotions flying around his head.

“Yes, I’m here, I’m here,” Chanyeol said. “You’re safe, it was just a nightmare.”

Still laden with fear Baekhyun dared to ask, “C-can you hold me? Please?” His voice was quiet as he said it.

Chanyeol didn’t seem to hesitate as he wrapped his arms firmly around Baekhyun’s sweaty body and held him tight. Chanyeol whispered reassuring things into his ear while rubbing his back waiting for him to feel calm again. And somehow, it felt better than his father’s embrace, he couldn’t exactly pinpoint what made it different, but he felt it.

“Do you want me to stay here with you?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun detached from Chanyeol and gave a small nod.

“I will then, do you want a glass of water? Something to eat?”

Baekhyun shook his head.

Chanyeol nodded. “Okay then, give me one minute I’m going to turn the air down a bit.”

By the time Chanyeol got back to his room he was almost asleep. He expected Chanyeol to assume he was asleep and leave but he heard his steps approach the bed and felt it dip beside him with his weight.

“I’m here if you need me Baekhyun,” Chanyeol whispered.

“Thank you,” Baekhyun whispered after a few minutes of silence.

Chanyeol must’ve whispered back a reply but Baekhyun was already asleep.

 

.           .           .

 

The next morning Baekhyun woke up to his alarm, surprisingly, no Kyungsoo opening up his blinds, no knocks on the door. He fumbled for his phone to turn of the noise and then the remote to open his blinds.

The other side of the bed was empty—Baekhyun had expected it—but what he didn’t expect was for it to still be warm. Surely Chanyeol must’ve left during the night after realizing that Baekhyun had fallen asleep.

He put on his robe and headed to the kitchen where some noises were coming from.

Chanyeol’s back was to him as he walked into the kitchen.

“Good morning,” Baekhyun said, announcing his presence.

Chanyeol turned around at the sound of his voice. He had on a white button up and black slacks like usual but Baekhyun would be lying if he said he didn’t look damn hot. “Good morning, Baekhyun. Kyungsoo texted saying he isn’t feeling well and will only be coming in later, so I’m cooking breakfast,” he said.

“Smells good,” Baekhyun said.

“I’m not a world class chef like Kyungsoo, so don’t expect too much from me.”

“It’s fine, I’m no cook either so I won’t judge,” Baekhyun said and took a seat at the table.

He stared at Chanyeol’s back as he cooked. The button up was tight in all the right places and emphasized every one of Chanyeol’s back muscles. Baekhyun would skip school just to stare at that hot back.

Chanyeol’s triceps flexed as he picked up the pan from the stove and Baekhyun couldn’t help but bite his lip. _My God he’s hot_ , Baekhyun thought to himself.

He snapped out of his daze as Chanyeol turned around and pretended like he _hadn’t_ been staring at Chanyeol’s muscles while he cooked.

“Here you go,” Chanyeol said setting a plate in front of him. It looked like mini sausages with bell peppers.

Baekhyun licked his lips. “Looks good,” he said.

“My mom would always make it when I was a kid—it’s been my favorite ever since,” Chanyeol explained.

“Thank you,” Baekhyun said and picked up a chopstick. He opted for stabbing a mini sausage with one chopstick and shoving the whole thing in his mouth. His eyes went wide. “Holy crap this is so good." He was being genuine, it might not have been a five-star dish but it made him feel nostalgic. "My grandma used to make something similar to this.”

“I’m glad you like it,” Chanyeol said.

“Chanyeol, can I ask you something?” Baekhyun said as he ate.

“Sure.” He took a seat across from Baekhyun.

Baekhyun hesitated. “Did you really…spend the entire night with me?”

Chanyeol nodded. “I wouldn’t’ve offered if I wasn’t going to keep my promise. And that brings me to, if you want to talk about it…” he looked like he was reconsidering what he was going to say.

“Hm?”

“I—I’m here, if you want to talk,” he finished.

“Thank you Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol looked down at his watch. “We still have a while so take your time. What else does Kyungsoo do for you in the morning?”

“You’re not my butler Chanyeol, you don’t need to worry,” Baekhyun said, “just… drop off three trays of sushi at the school later today, I’ll order, you just pick it up.”

Chanyeol nodded.

Baekhyun cleaned the plate until there was nothing left and let Chanyeol take it from him after a short dispute over who would wash it—which Chanyeol won after pointing out the fact that he still had to get ready.

Baekhyun forfeited the fight and headed up to his room. His bed was undone and his uniform was not laid out. Kyungsoo was truly his angel in the morning. He sighed and opened the doors to his closet.

One of the reasons he always had Kyungsoo get out his uniform was because something could be staring him in the face and he still wouldn’t find it.

By the time he’d found his uniform there was an enormous pile of clothes in the middle of his closet.

He was halfway through his morning routine when there was a light knock on the bedroom door.

“Baekhyun? We’re going to be late,” Chanyeol said.

“Give me two more minutes,” Baekhyun said trying not to get any cleanser into his mouth.

“Alright then, I’ll be waiting downstairs,” Chanyeol said.

“Okay.”

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun remembered to take some kimchi to school for Minseok and Jongdae—which they devoured in the blink of an eye—and they shared the sushi Chanyeol brought to the school; however, despite Baekhyun’s begging he insisted he couldn’t stay.

“You didn’t really expect him to stay, did you?” Minseok asked. “He probably wanted to be nowhere near whining teenagers going through puberty.”

Baekhyun sighed. “I really thought we were getting somewhere…”

“Why? Did something happen?”

Baekhyun hesitated. “Well… last night I had a nightmare—again—and Chanyeol heard me screaming and woke me up…”  
Jongdae and Minseok leaned in. “And then?” Minseok asked.

“And then he spent the night in my bed—the _entire_ night,” Baekhyun finished.

Minseok’s eyes went wide. “Then what? Did you guys wake up cuddling or something?”

“Ew, no, he was awake by the time I woke up,” Baekhyun said trying to feign disgust—it wouldn’t’ve been so bad if he’d woken up cuddling with Chanyeol. “He cooked breakfast since Soo was gone and then he brought me to school.”

Minseok purred. “I love a man that can cook.”

“Ya! Stop it!” Baekhyun said. “He’s my bodyguard.”

Minseok was going to respond but was cut off by the bell.

“I’ll see you guys later,” Baekhyun said and left before he could say anything stupid.

On his way out of the cafeteria he saw Joy standing by the doors talking to some friends; he turned his face hoping she wouldn’t see him, but his efforts were futile.

“Baekhyun-oppa!” Joy said as he walked by her.

Baekhyun sighed internally and stopped.

“Hey Joy,” he said trying to keep the annoyance from his voice.

“Are you free this weekend? My friends and I are throwing a party and you’re welcome to come.”

He scratched the back of his head. “I’ll see…” If Joy was throwing a party that meant the entire football and baseball team was invited; that also meant loud music and a lot of booze.

“You can bring some friends too, the more the merrier,” she added.

“Yeah, I’ll… I’ll see. I’ll get back to you?”

“Of course! No rush… Since we’re going to the same class let’s walk together.” Baekhyun almost noticeably flinched back when Joy hooked an arm around his and began pulling him down the hallway.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun was abnormally one of the last ones to arrive at the locker room, all thanks to his teacher for holding him past the bell.

“Hey hey hey! Look who’s here,” came Choi Minho’s voice as he walked into the locker room, “Kim Baekhyun, the last one to the locker room what a surprise!”

Baekhyun ignored him and went to his locker. There were guys all around in various states of dress and undress.

Baekhyun was for once glad his locker was in a small corner, rendering him moderately invisible to the other boys in the locker room—except for the ones right next to him.

“Damn Baek, what’re you trying to hide?” said Lee Taemin beside him, eying his chest up and down.

Baekhyun hugged his chest defensively. “Nothing…” he mumbled. He fished his shirt out of his locker and quickly put it on.

“Aw, is Baekie a little shy?” Minho teased. He reached a hand out towards Baekhyun’s chest but Baekhyun slapped it away.

Taemin and Minho exchanged looks.

“I just—like my privacy,” Baekhyun said.

“Whatever you say…” Minho said but Baekhyun didn’t like his tone.

“Everyone out to the field!” Yixing called and everyone began filing out of the locker room.

“I’m almost done Coach,” Baekhyun called and received a nod in reply from his coach.

Minho and Taemin didn’t bother him during practice—which worried him; those two were never ones to leave things unfinished.

Per usual he tried to be the last on in the locker room, even offered Yixing help picking up the equipment to delay him further.

By the time he got to the locker room there were only two or three guys left. He opted for taking a shower at the school taking advantage of the empty locker room. Maybe he and Chanyeol could grab something to eat after he picked him up.

The showers in the locker room were almost as good as his at home (the perks of going to the country’s most expensive private school); so good that he would’ve stayed there for hours had he not heard some commotion outside.

He turned the shower off and wrapped a towel around his waist and hung another one over his shoulders.

The three guys that were still in the locker room had left and an eerie silence had replaced their quiet chatter.

“What’s going on?” he muttered to himself.

He found out once he got to his locker—which was wide open, and empty.

“Damn it!” he yelled. He heard snickering somewhere in the locker room. “Give me back my clothes Minho!”

Minho and Taemin and some other guys came out from behind a row of lockers, Minho and Taemin carrying what could only be his things.

“Still shy Baek?” Taemin teased.

“Give me my stuff,” he said.

“But you look so good Baek, why would you want your clothes,” Minho said. The boys all snickered at his comment.

“I’m serious Minho, give me my stuff.” Baekhyun reached for his stuff but they stepped back. “What do you want Minho?”

“We were just curious as to what you were hiding underneath all these clothes,” Minho explained.

“Okay, you saw it, now give me back my stuff.”

“Come get it,” he said and took off running with his things.

Baekhyun only had time to yell a “Hey!” before he began running after them. He could easily outrun them on the field but not when he had to keep a towel around his waist from slipping.

“Get back here you assholes! Give me my stuff back!” he yelled after them. He chased them out of the locker room into the parking lot—which was mostly empty except for _one_ particular person.

“What’s going on?” he heard Chanyeol say.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!   
> Leave me your comments and thoughts below, I'd love to chat!


	6. Bodyguard? More like Big Brother

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chanyeol is starting to become more than just a bodyguard

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little late but it's here! Things are starting to pick up!! Yay!  
> A lot of the introductory bits are over with so now the real stuff starts happening!!

Taemin and Minho eyed him up and down, frozen in their spots.

“Give me my shit back!” Baekhyun yelled, still running to catch up with them.

“I’ll be taking those,” Chanyeol said, taking Baekhyun’s things from the petrified boys. “If you two are done you may go.”

The two boys nodded and scrambled out of Chanyeol’s way.

“You didn’t need to do that,” Baekhyun grunted, taking his clothes from Chanyeol’s hands. “I’ll be back,” he said and headed back in the direction of the locker room.

Baekhyun avoided Chanyeol’s eyes once he got back and made no move to start small talk.

It wasn’t that Baekhyun was ashamed of Chanyeol having seen him half naked—the opposite, actually—but he’d rather it have been under different circumstances. No doubt Taemin and Minho were going to spread to the whole school that Baekhyun couldn’t handle his own problems and had to be saved by his new bodyguard. He groaned at the thought.

“What happened?”

Baekhyun looked up from his phone. “Hm?” He thought he might’ve imagined it.

“What happened back there?” Chanyeol repeated.

“ _Nothing_ , just some assholes pulling a prank,” Baekhyun replied.

“Just making sure…”

Chanyeol didn’t push for any more information, thankfully for Baekhyun—but then again, he doubted he would have.

Kyungsoo had gotten back to the house by the time Baekhyun arrived and dinner was ready and the table was set. Kyungsoo had cooked traditional Japanese-style ramen; having already showered, Baekhyun sat down immediately and scooped up some noodles for himself. Today he didn’t insist on having the other two eat with him, which probably alerted Kyungsoo that something was wrong.

After Chanyeol excused himself to his room Kyungsoo walked Baekhyun to his.

“Why weren’t you here this morning?” Baekhyun asked before Kyungsoo had the chance to ask what was wrong.

“One too many bottles of Soju,” Kyungsoo explained with a chuckle.

“What was the occasion?”

“I got an award from the Seoul Industry of Gastronomy for a new dish at the restaurant, so I decided to take the staff out for drinks—I did most of the drinking.”

“Oooo, congrats Soo I’m so happy for you,” Baekhyun said trying his best to sound happy.

“Thank you Baekhyun, especially since you were the one that inspired my dish, you should’ve been celebrating with us.”

“I feel honored, but my dad would’ve probably killed me, then you, for taking me out to celebrate on a school night.”

They both chuckled.

“You’re probably right,” Kyungsoo said. “Now you talk to me, what happened today?”

Baekhyun sighed. “Just some guys from the team playing a prank on me…”

“What did they do?” Kyungsoo wasn’t one for pleasantries.

“They took my stuff from my locker while I was showering,” Baekhyun said; there was no point in lying about it.

“Who exactly? I’ll call the school tomorrow if you’d like and have them suspended.” Sometimes Kyungsoo acted more like his dad than his butler—or his actual dad, for that matter.

“ _No_! That’ll just make things worse.”

Kyungsoo sighed. “Okay, okay, I won’t say anything—but if they do anything else you let me know.”

“I will…”

Kyungsoo patted him on the shoulder. “You be good, don’t cause Chanyeol too much trouble.”

Baekhyun nodded. “Thanks Soo. Good night.”

“Good night,” Kyungsoo said and made his way back down the hall.

Baekhyun slipped into the shower for a few minutes then put on his pajamas.

He laid on his bed and willed himself to fall asleep but couldn’t, just the thought of having another nightmare kept him awake.

He tossed and turned for what felt like hours. His phone read _1:53_.

Eventually he gave up on sleep and decided to head to the kitchen for a glass of water

As he passed by Chanyeol’s door he saw a ray of light coming from underneath which made Baekhyun wonder if Chanyeol was still awake.

He put up his fist to the door but hesitated. Just because Chanyeol had spent one night with him didn’t mean he wanted to be sleeping with him every night. _The worst thing that could happen is that he could say no_ , the other part of his mind said. He sighed. _Screw it_ , he thought, and knocked. “Chanyeol?”

“Come in,” Chanyeol called.

Baekhyun opened the door hesitantly. Chanyeol was lying in bed underneath the covers with a book on his lap; his hair was still a bit wet from his shower and he had black rimmed glasses on.

“Am I interrupting something?” Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol shook his head.

“I didn’t think you’d still be up…” Baekhyun said.

“I got carried away with my reading I guess,” Chanyeol said, looking at the time on his phone. “What about you? What are you doing up this late?”

Baekhyun shrugged. “Couldn’t sleep.”

“Afraid of more nightmares?”

Baekhyun only nodded in reply.

“If you want to talk about it I’d be more than willing to listen,” Chanyeol said, in that same gentle voice he had used earlier that morning.

Baekhyun took a tentative step inside the room. Chanyeol didn’t say anything, as if waiting for Baekhyun to decide for himself.

“It’s because…” he started. He took a couple more steps towards Chanyeol’s bed.

Chanyeol remained silent and didn’t push Baekhyun for more.

“My brother died, three years ago—he was shot.” It was the first time had ever said those words out loud in a long time. “S-so… I have dreams— _nightmares_ —that _I_ get shot.”

Chanyeol only murmured a “ _Mmmm..._ ” Baekhyun didn’t complain, there wasn’t much he could’ve said. He hesitantly sat at the edge of the bed watching Chanyeol for any signs of annoyance.

“I know this doesn’t help but I’m sorry for your loss,” he finally said after a few moments of silence.

Baekhyun looked down at the quilt on the bed, not trusting himself to look Chanyeol in the eye. “I’ve gotten past it—it happened a long time ago—but the nightmares still haunt me, especially around the time of the anniversary...”

“If you don’t mind me asking, what exactly happened?”

Baekhyun was surprised Chanyeol asked but didn’t mind it.

“We don’t know, some guy just walked into the bar he was at and shot him and another woman,” Baekhyun explained. “The police had never found a motive—or the culprit for that matter.”

There was another moment of silence, then finally Chanyeol said, “My little sister was killed, six years ago—she was only ten—she was killed in the crossfire.”

It was Baekhyun’s turn to be silent. “I’m sorry,” was all he could bring himself to say.

“It happened a long time ago, but I know how you feel. During the first few years it was hard, I had nightmares like you, but it got better with time.”

Baekhyun nodded his acknowledgement. “Thanks.”

“I have some friends in the police force, if you want I can restart the investigation,” Chanyeol said.

“No, no, it’s fine, I don’t want to reopen old wounds,” Baekhyun replied.

Chanyeol nodded. “If you change your mind my offer still stands.”

There was a moment of silence between them until, “What was he like?” Chanyeol asked, willing Baekhyun to look up.

“Amazing, the best role model; he was my father’s pride and joy, my grandfather’s too… He was the perfect son, perfect older brother, perfect boyfriend, everything. You can understand why it was such a terrible loss… What about your sister? What was she like?”

“The cutest little angel you’d ever seen. You couldn’t help but fall in love with her. I spoiled her a lot, much to the dismay of my parents, but she was still so sweet and well behaved, my parents could’ve have asked for a more perfect child.” Baekhyun couldn’t help but be touched by the way Chanyeol described his younger sister, just by his words he could feel how much Chanyeol loved her. It must’ve been devastating for him to lose her.

“Such a tragedy for two beautiful souls to be lost like that so soon,” Baekhyun said.

Baekhyun made himself more comfortable on Chanyeol’s bed as the night went on and they talked for a long time, and before he even noticed he was lying beside Chanyeol, his eyelids droopy.

The last thing he remembered was hearing a faint “Good night” from Chanyeol but being already asleep before he could respond.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun slowly blinked his eyes open to find Chanyeol sitting beside him on the bed whispering for him to wake up.

“Good morning,” he heard Chanyeol say. He was already dressed and ready and his breath smelled like mint.

Baekhyun yawned, looking around and taking in his surroundings.

“You fell asleep on my bed last night and I didn’t want to wake you up,” Chanyeol answered before Baekhyun could even ask.

“What time is it?” he asked, conscious of his morning breath.

“It’s 6:45,” Chanyeol said. “Kyungsoo made your breakfast already. How’d you sleep?” he asked, “Any nightmares?”

Baekhyun shook his head. For the first time that week he hadn’t had _any_ nightmares. “I didn’t dream of anything.”

“Good then, I’m glad,” Chanyeol said. “Well, you should probably get up before you’re late. I’ll be waiting downstairs.”

Baekhyun nodded. Chanyeol nodded in reply and got up to leave.

“Oh, and by the way, you got hot during the night so you took your pants off,” Chanyeol added as he opened the door.

Baekhyun ripped the covers off, revealing his bare legs. _He’d slept beside Chanyeol half-naked?!_ He felt his cheeks flush at the thought.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t peek,” was the last thing Chanyeol said before closing the door, and Baekhyun was almost sure he heard the ghost of a laugh.

He found his pants on the floor beside him and put them on before rushing to his room, where, of course, Kyungsoo was waiting.

“Did you sleep with Chanyeol?” was his first question.

“No! _No_! No no _no_.”

“But you were in his room.”

“I mean, we slept in the same bed, yes, but... nothing else I swear,” Baekhyun explained.

“That was what I meant, what else you were thinking?”

“ _Oh_. Then in that case, yes, I slept with Chanyeol in his room.”

“Why?”

“Because...” he tried thinking of a better excuse.

“Because...?”

“Because I was having nightmares and Chanyeol said I could crash with him if I wanted,” he said, giving up on lying.

“ _Mmm_...” was all Kyungsoo had to say.

“What? Are you judging me?”

“No, no I’m not judging you, just thinking.”

“Well then stop, it’s not that complicated.”

Kyungsoo shrugged. “Whatever you say Baekhyun.”

“Ok now that you know you can get out, I need to get dressed.”

Kyungsoo tried to hide a chuckle. “Okay, okay, I’m leaving,” he said and left Baekhyun alone.

 

.           .           .

 

Minseok almost spat out his coffee when Baekhyun told him about what had happened.

“Minseok! My white shirt!” Baekhyun shrieked. “Geez, it’s not that big of a deal.”

“Not that big of a deal? You slept with him,” Minseok said, sounding appalled.

“Ya! Keep your voice down! People might get the wrong idea,” Baekhyun shout-whispered to him.

“Baekhyunie, you two,” he lowered his voice, “slept in the same bed, for a whole night, _together_. Is he gay?”

“No—I don’t know! Minseok!”

Minseok gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Just wondering…”

“Minseok! Stay away from my bodyguard!”

“Why? Are you jealous?” Minseok asked wiggling his eyebrows.

“Who’s jealous of who?” Jongdae asked, cutting Baekhyun off before he could reply.

“No one,” Minseok said. “Don’t worry about it.”

Baekhyun let out a small sigh of relief.

“Let’s go to class before we’re late,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun nodded. “I’ll see you guys later,” he said and walked off in the direction of his classroom.

He was almost at his classroom when he felt an arm hook around his elbow.

He almost cringed when he heard a feminine voice say, “ _Baekhyun-oppa_ …”

He turned around to face Joy. “Hey Joy…”

“So did you think about it?” Joy asked.

“Think about what?”

“The _party_ ,” Joy said.

_He had completely forgotten about it._

“Uh, y-yeah I did, um, I’m not sure I can make it, my parents are having guests over and they’ll probably want me to be home,” Baekhyun said, which was probably a really shitty excuse, but it was what he could come up with.

But Joy just wouldn’t get the hint. “Aw, maybe you could stop by a bit later, the party starts at 8 but I doubt anybody will actually show up until 9.”

“I’ll try,” Baekhyun said, but he doubted he would.

“Please do, it’s gonna be fun.” She walked glued to his side the rest of the way to their class. “Baekhyun-oppa, can I sit with you today?”

“Of course…” Baekhyun replied, keeping the bitterness from his tone.

 

.           .           .

 

Joy sitting beside him hadn’t been as bad as he imagined—Joy was smart, smarter than him maybe—but it didn’t stop him from praying time would go by faster. She kept touching him and being clingy, he _hated_ it. He practically ran to the library for break, not wanting to be harassed by Joy a moment longer.

The library was relatively empty when he arrived; taking a seat close to the windows he pulled out his book and resumed his reading. The library grew noisier as more people began piling in, but it didn’t disturb him much, but not for long.

“Look who it is…” came a voice from beside him. He groaned.

“Leave me alone Minho,” Baekhyun said, and tried focusing on his book.

“Who was that yesterday? I’ve never seen him around. Is he your nanny?”

Baekhyun rolled his eyes and chose to ignore them.

“Not your nanny then… Maybe your boyfriend?”

Baekhyun’s head snapped up. “Shut it Minho.”

“Geez, chill Baek, I was just kidding…”

Baekhyun sighed. “Sorry, it’s just… you and Taemin pissed me off yesterday.”

“Our bad,” Minho said, “hey, no hard feelings alright? We were just curious about what you were hiding underneath all those sweaters.” He leaned in closer. “We were impressed,” he whispered.

Baekhyun almost blushed at the compliment. “Thanks,” he muttered.

“You should come workout with us sometime,” Minho said.

Baekhyun shrugged. “I’ll think about it.”

Minho gave him a small nod and walked away.

 

.           .           .

 

The rest of his day went fine, especially since there was no practice because it was Friday. Minho and his friends were back to their normal douche-bag selves but didn’t bother Baekhyun much.

Chanyeol, as always was waiting for Baekhyun in the parking lot, taking his bag from him and placing it in the trunk.

“How was your day?” Chanyeol asked.

“Good—better than yesterday, sort of…” Baekhyun replied.

“Did those boys bother you again?” Chanyeol asked, and Baekhyun was almost touched by him asking.

Baekhyun shook his head. “Not this time. Just some girl that likes me too much for her own good…”

“Why? You don’t like her?” Baekhyun was surprised Chanyeol had kept the conversation going.

“She’s not exactly my _type_ …”

“I see…” Chanyeol said. “Well, anyways, Kyungsoo said he had business at the restaurant to attend to but he left dinner for you.”

“Why don’t we grab some food instead since I’m out early? Will you eat with me?” Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol gave a one-shouldered shrug. “Sure. What do you want?”

“Ooo, there’s this really good teokbokki place nearby my friends and I always go to,” Baekhyun said.

“Just tell me how to get there,” Chanyeol said, and opened the door for him.

Baekhyun entered the car and scooted up so he could tell Chanyeol where to go. “Okay, just, um, take a left at the gate instead of right,” Baekhyun informed.

Chanyeol nodded and complied.

“It’s just a few kilometers down the road, it’s called _Chunghwa’s_ ,” Baekhyun said once they were on the road.

Chanyeol gave a small nod and steered the car in the direction in which Baekhyun had directed.

Baekhyun got on his phone and scrolled through his Instagram feed, occasionally looking up to make sure Chanyeol hadn’t missed the restaurant.

While he wasn’t paying attention Chanyeol muttered something and Baekhyun looked up to make sure he hadn’t just imagined it and he was about to ask if he’d said something but then he noticed that Chanyeol had his phone up to his ear.

“Tomorrow night, I promise,” he paused, “I told you, I’m working…For who? You know I can’t tell you that…Wait, don’t hang up,” another pause, “I’m _not_ lying to you, it’s just confidential, I’m _paid_ not to say anything.” Chanyeol let out a sigh. “We’ll meet tomorrow, okay? I’ll tell you as much as I can. I-I gotta go, ‘kay, bye.”

He wondered who Chanyeol had been talking to, but he felt it wasn’t his place to ask.

Chanyeol caught his eye through the rear-view mirror right as they were approaching the restaurant. “This one, right?” Chanyeol asked.

“Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uh-oh.. who was Chanyeol talking to? ;)))))
> 
> Thanks for reading! Please continue to look forward to more stuff!!  
> Please leave your thoughts and comments below I'd love to chat with you guys!  
> 


	7. Anything for You Baekie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After getting yelled at by his dad Baekhyun dyes his hair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry its so laaaate but it's here! The next chapter is my favorite so far!!

Baekhyun’s phone started ringing while he worked on his overdue homework and he decided to ignore it, but whoever was calling seemed persistent.

“This better be important,” Baekhyun muttered to himself.

He audibly groaned when he saw the caller ID _Joy_ [rolling eye emoji]. He was going to just let it ring but he knew how persistent Joy was. He sighed and brought the phone up to his ear. “Hey, _Joy_ ,” he said, trying to not sound sarcastic.

“ _So I was wondering if you are going to make it to the party? Minseok and that new guy Jongdae already confirmed so I’m assuming you’re coming too?_ ”

Fuck Minseok and Jongdae for not telling him in advance.

“Yeah, of course, you can... count me in,” _unfortunately_ , he added to himself.

“Awesome! I can’t wait!” Joy started going on about how fun the party was going to be, not that Baekhyun cared.

There was a knock on Baekhyun’s door. “Come in,” he said, holding his phone to the side.

It was Chanyeol; he had his bags in his hands looking like he was ready to leave. “I’m sorry I didn’t want to bother you,” he said once he noticed Baekhyun was on the phone.

“Oh no, you’re fine it’s no one important,” Baekhyun said, hoping Joy hadn’t heard him.

“I just wanted to let you know I’m leaving; your parents have just arrived.”

“Ah, ok, I’ll send you my plans for tomorrow,” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol nodded right as Baekhyun caught the ending of one of Joy’s questions, which he hadn’t paid attention to.

“I’m sorry Joy what was that?”

 _“I said, are you bringing a date?”_ The question sounded tentative, almost as if she was afraid of the answer.

“What? No, no, just me.”

 _“Ah, ok, I can’t wait then!”_ She sounded relieved. _“I’ll see you tomorrow!”_ Her amount of enthusiasm annoyed Baekhyun.

“I can’t wait either, see you tomorrow.”

By the time Baekhyun put down his phone Chanyeol had already left and he hadn’t even gotten the chance to say a proper goodbye.

“ _Damn it_ Joy,” he muttered under his breath.

He rushed downstairs hoping he could catch Chanyeol before he left but he was intercepted by his mother at the bottom of the staircase.

“Baekie!” his mother cried and enveloped him in a hug as if she hadn’t seen him in weeks.

“Hey mom,” Baekhyun said. “How was the trip?”

“Very nice actually—help me with these bags will you?—we had time to enjoy ourselves after your father had finished his work. Bali is a very nice place, we should go together another time.”

“Sounds fun,” Baekhyun said, pretending to be interested.

“What about you? Was Chanyeol okay?”

“Yeah, we didn’t have any issues. He’s a good bodyguard.” He hoped he didn’t sound too enthusiastic.

“See Baekie, I told you it wasn’t going to be so bad. Oh, that’s your father’s I think he wants it in his office,” his mother said once she saw the briefcase he’d picked up.

Baekhyun nodded and headed towards his father’s office.

He usually never went into his father’s office, mostly because he didn’t need to nor did he want to so he was surprised by the change in furniture inside, it was a lot darker than he remembered. Deviating from his father’s usual preference for warm brown tones the office was now decorated in various shades of grey and black, matching all of the fancy tech on his father’s large—now no longer wooden—glass top desk.

“Wow, morbid much…” Baekhyun muttered to himself.

He walked around the desk to place the briefcase neatly on his father’s desk when he noticed a thick manila folder lying on the desk. The bent and ripped corners and numerous stains on it indicated that it was old. Setting the briefcase on the leather chair behind him, Baekhyun opened the file curiously. He instantly figured out what it was by the picture clipped to the front document on the inside: his brother’s old case file.

He was going to close it back up and leave the office because he already knew what was in it, his father had let him look at it once or twice in the past, but he wondered why, after three years already, his father still had his brother’s unsolved murder case file. He picked it up and flipped through the documents, quickly learning that his father had let him see very few of the documents involved in the case, although he wasn’t very surprised, he was only 18 after all, in his father’s eyes he was still a baby and he likely hadn’t wanted to horrify Baekhyun with the gruesome details and images of his own brother’s murder, but there were still so many papers that Baekhyun had never seen before. It made him think there was something his father hadn’t told him.

“What are you doing in here?” came a voice from the doorway.

Instinctively Baekhyun closed the file and let it drop onto the desk. “Dad, hi, mom told me to drop off your briefcase for you,” Baekhyun said, hoping his father wasn’t going to get mad at him.

“You did, now get out.”

Baekhyun almost jumped back at his father’s tone. He nodded and obeyed his father without objection.

“He’s hiding something,” he whispered to himself on the way up to his room. He shook the thought from his head. “I’ll worry about that later…” _Right now I have to yell at Minseok for promising Joy he would go to her party_ , he thought, remembering his conversation with Joy earlier.

On the bright side, it was an excuse for him to see Chanyeol tomorrow. He almost giggled at the thought.

The past couple of days seemed so surreal, he went from not even getting a few words from Chanyeol to full on sleeping with Chanyeol—not in the exact way he wanted, but hey, it counted.

Baekhyun swore to himself he wouldn’t drink too much at the party because as much as he hated to admit it, he knew how _overconfident_ , to say the least, he got when he was drunk.

After he thought about it for a while, maybe Joy’s party wouldn’t be so bad…

 

.           .           .

 

“Come over to my house, I need you to dye my hair,” Baekhyun said once the person on the other side picked up the phone.

“What the fuck? It’s 7 in the morning Baekhyun,” came a groggy voice from the other end of the line.

“I know Ten, but I need it for tonight so you need to do it like _now_ ,” Baekhyun explained.

Ten groaned. “How much are you paying me?”

“Whatever you want, you know money’s not the problem,” Baekhyun said, not being able to help the smirk that tugged at the corner of his mouth. “And come on, you _owe me_.”

Ten sighed this time. “Fine. I’ll be there in fifteen minutes. And I want an iced latte and a sandwich.”

“Will do sir, see you soon. Mwah.”

“Yeah, yeah. What color do you want?”

“I haven’t decided yet, bring what you have.”

“I don’t want you complaining from the bleach,” Ten warned.

“Just hurry please,” Baekhyun said and hung up before Ten could protest.

“JOHNNYYYYY,” he yelled to his chauffeur. “GO TO STARBUCKS AND BUY ME TWO ICED LATTES AND A SANDWICH.”

“YES SIR,” Johnny yelled back from downstairs.

Baekhyun tossed his covers off of him and changed into his hair-dyeing outfit then set up the bathroom for Ten to dye his hair.

Ten was used to Baekhyun calling him at the most random times demanding  for him to dye his hair despite Ten refusing to work on weekends—he claimed spending five days of the week around hair dye was enough, but for the right price Baekhyun could have him at his house in less than 20 minutes, and also Ten liked spending time with Baekhyun regardless of how much Baekhyun annoyed him.

Ten and Johnny arrived almost together, Ten taking his coffee from Johnny’s hand almost immediately right after flashing him with a flirtatious smile.

“How many times have I told you to stop flirting with him,” Baekhyun said as Ten walked into his room pulling a rolling suitcase behind him.

“How rude of you to assume I was flirting with your cute butler,” Ten joked, not even ashamed of himself.

Baekhyun just rolled his eyes. “I can’t with you…”

Ten took his suitcase into the bathroom and laid it down.  “Just because you’re still in the closet doesn’t mean I have to be,” Ten replied casually.

Baekhyun looked panicked for a second. “Don’t say that so loud,” he snapped.

“Don’t worry, I saw your parents leaving as I walked in,” Ten said as he opened the suitcase and began taking things out.  

“Doesn’t matter, the walls have ears in this house…”

“I’m sorry Baekhyunie I won’t talk about your sexuality too loud anymore.”

Ten let out a yelp as Baekhyun whacked him in the shoulder with a towel.

“Sorry, sorry, I’ll stop,” Ten said with a chuckle.  

“What colors do you have?” Baekhyun asked, changing the subject.

“Let’s see… lavender, dark blue, black, silver, and blonde,” Ten said, pulling the boxes of hair dye as he listed them off.

“Are you allowed to mix dyes?” Baekhyun asked.

“There’s nothing wrong with mixing dyes only the result is a bit unpredictable,” Ten said, “what were you thinking?”

“I don’t know, maybe blonde and silver, do you think that’ll look good?”

“I think it’ll look perfect,” Ten said. “Is that what you want?”

Baekhyun nodded.

“Alright let’s get this going, even though your hair is kind of light I’m still going to have to do two layers of bleaching.” Ten motioned for Baekhyun to sit on the chair situated by the sink. “Don’t you dare complain,” he warned.

 Baekhyun rolled his eyes. “I’m not a baby, Ten.”

“You sure act like one,” Ten joked.

“Just shut up and dye my hair, I’m paying you.”

After Baekhyun sat down on the chair he didn’t get up for another two hours—he began complaining that he was hungry and Ten let him to get up to get them a snack—then he sat back down for another three hours until Ten was done, whining that it was itching and he wanted to be done already.

“Shut up!” Ten yelled for what must’ve been the millionth time. “I’m almost done, I just need to dry it now.”

“Thank God,” Baekhyun muttered.

Ten picked up the blow dryer and began drying Baekhyun’s as he ran his hand threw it.

 “I wanna see it,” Baekhyun whined, “Just finish already.”

“DO I LOOK LIKE A FAIRY TO YOU I CAN’T MAGICALY MAKE HAIR DRY!” Ten yelled and Baekhyun shrunk back like a hurt puppy. Ten’s patience, it seemed, had run out.

Ten sighed. “Come on, don’t look at me with those puppy eyes.” Baekhyun pouted his lips. “Okay, fine, I’m sorry. You just whine, like, _so much_.”

“I’m sorry, but is it done?”

Ten set the blow dryer down. “Yes, finally.”

Baekhyun jumped up immediately and spun around to look himself in the mirror.

“Oh man, holy shit. It looks fucking amazing! Ten I love it!” Baekhyun exclaimed.

“Good, as long as you like it then it was worth my suffering.”

“Thank you Tennie,” Baekhyun said, embracing Ten in a bear hug while Ten cleaned up his mess.

“Anything for you Baekie,” Ten said.

 

.           .           .

 

When it came to making decisions, Baekhyun was horrible at it. The school uniforms were secretly a blessing in disguise, saving Baekhyun from having to choose an outfit every morning.

Hence the dilemma he faced when he began picking out an outfit for the party. There was already a pile of clothes in the middle of his room and he’d only been looking at clothes for ten minutes.

He let out a big sigh and tossed another shirt into the pile.

There was a knock on his door.

“ _What_?” he snapped.

“It’s your mother Baekie,” his mother said, poking her head through the door. “Woah, looks like a tornado swept through your room… what is going on?”

“I’m trying to find an outfit,” Baekhyun called from his closet.

“Any special occasion? A date?”

Baekhyun scoffed. “None of your business.”

“Don’t speak that way to me,” his mother said although her tone did not hold any firmness to it.

Baekhyun didn’t reply.

“I’ll take that as a _no_?” his mother asked.

“Just go mom,” Baekhyun said.

“Okay sweetie, just call me if you need anything,” she said as she slipped back outside and closed the door behind her.

Baekhyun sat down amongst his clothes and let out another sigh. “What am I gonna wear?” he pouted.

In the corner of his eye he saw a jean jacket laid on the floor by the other jackets he’d so carelessly ripped off of their hangers.

He didn’t remember pulling off that specific jacket; he crawled to it and picked it up to examine it. It was oversized, as most of Baekhyun’s clothes were—he liked that it made him seem even tinnier—which didn’t surprise him, but he didn’t remember wearing it at all.  

“Denim jacket it is,” Baekhyun said to himself. Baekhyun sighed thoughtfully. “And what about underneath?”

After a few more minutes—more like an hour—he decided on a black mock neck layered with a white graphic tee over it paired with black skinny jeans and black lace up boots to finish it off.

Right as he was clipping on his earrings his phone rang. Without properly looking at who was calling he hit answer and put it up to the ear that already had earrings on it.

“Hello?”

“It’s Chanyeol, I’m outside.”

Baekhyun’s heart skipped a beat at the masculine voice that spoke. “Oh okay, I’m almost ready, just wait one minute.”

“Alright.”

Baekhyun clipped on the last earring and hurriedly grabbed his phone, rushing to get downstairs.

“I’m here!” he announced as he stepped out of the front door.

Chanyeol was waiting for Baekhyun beside the rear door dressed in his usual black suit.

“Your hair…” was the first thing he said to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun smiled, twirling a strand with his finger. “You like it?”

“It looks good.”

Baekhyun resisted the urge to giggle like a school girl. “Thank you,” he said rather cutely.

“Ready?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun nodded.

 

.           .           .

Joy’s house was unmistakable, people were everywhere, the music could be heard from down the block, there were lights on inside the whole house.

Chanyeol look dubiously at the house.

“Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as it looks,” Baekhyun said once he noticed Chanyeol’s expression.

“I’ll drop you off at the front then find a place to park the car,” Chanyeol said.

“No, no, no, you don’t need to—”

“I’ll just stay in the car; I won’t bother you. Just call me when you want to leave.”

“No, there’s really no need, you can go home. The neighborhood is gated and I’m sure Joy hired some bodyguards to keep everything under control,” Baekhyun explained. “I don’t want you to waste a perfectly good Saturday night because of me.”

“Baekhyun, it’s my job, don’t worry about me,” Chanyeol said.

“Nothing will happen Chanyeol, I know these people, they’re too important to be doing dumb stuff.”

“That’s what worries me the most,” Chanyeol said.

“I’ve been to numerous of these kinds of parties, nothing bad ever happens. Just go home and I’ll call you when I’m ready.”

Chanyeol hesitated.

 _Don’t make me use my puppy face_ , Baekhyun thought.

“Okay, but if anything, I mean anything, happens you call me.”

Baekhyun nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Thanks for reading <3 So many exciting things to come!!!!


	8. Partying a Little Too Hard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun thinks the party is lame and then something starts to feel off

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> MY BETA AND I'S FAVORITE CHAPTER  
> PLEASE ENJOY ;)))
> 
> [the four dots indicate a change in perspective just fyi]

In Baekhyun’s opinion, the party was lame, the music was too loud, there were people making out everywhere—namely Sehun and Kai—and the booze was terrible, except for the soju. To top it off, he’d lost Minseok and Jongdae at some point.

He stood up from the bar stool he was sitting at and almost fell over immediately after. Suddenly everything looked blurry. His empty bottle of soju—the only he’d drunken so far—was still in his hand. Baekhyun looked at it confusedly, he usually could handle one bottle perfectly fine, maybe even two. Had he drunken more and not realized it? _No way_ , he thought. He shrugged. “Oh, well,” he said out loud.

Bottle still in his hand, he went looking for Minseok and Jongdae.

“Minseokie! Chen Chen Chen, where are you guys?” he yelled.

“Baekhyun?” came a voice from behind him.

Baekhyun spun around. “Sehun! Kai!” He approached the couple and situated himself in the middle, throwing his arms over their shoulders. “How are my favorite love birds?” he asked, and he could tell he was slurring yet he couldn’t bring himself to care.

“Baekhyun how much have you drank?” Sehun asked, trying to get Baekhyun’s arm off of his shoulder.

Baekhyun paused. “One bottle of soju? I think...” He lifted up the empty bottle by Kai’s head to show them.

“No way,” Sehun said. “Hang on, Kai, watch him for a minute, I’m getting Minseok.”

Kai nodded and wrapped an arm around Baekhyun’s waist to keep him from falling over after Sehun detached himself.

“This is _not_ just one bottle of soju,” Baekhyun heard Kai mutter to himself.

Baekhyun rested his head on Kai’s shoulder. “You’re so lucky to have Sehun, I want a man like that…” he went on after Kai didn’t reply, surprisingly not fazed by his statement, “He’s so tall and gorgeous—and his voice _oh my God_ , it’s like velvet. And boy does he look good in a suit,” Baekhyun said with glazed over eyes.

Kai looked confused. “…Sehun?”  

“ _Nooo_ —” Baekhyun was cut off as Sehun approached with Minseok and Jongdae in tow.

“Just look at him,” Sehun was saying, “he looks like he’s about to pass out.”

Minseok actually looked surprised. “He’s never like this, what’s going on?”

“He said he only drank this bottle,” Kai said, “but even someone his size, one bottle of soju does not do this much damage.”

Minseok got a bit closer to Baekhyun. “Hey, Baek, what’s going on?”

“What’s going on with _you_? Have you kissed Chen yet?”

Minseok looked confused.

Baekhyun pouted and held up his arm to point at Jongdae. “Chen,” he said.

“ _Baekhyun_ ,” Jongdae snapped, cheeks a bit red.

“ _Alright_ , time to call your body guard…” Minseok said before anyone else got embarrassed.

“CHANYEOL!” Baekhyun yelled at the top of his lungs.

“Yes, yes, Chanyeol,” Minseok said, and began digging around Baekhyun’s pockets for his phone. Baekhyun giggled when Minseok hands felt his ass while he looked for his phone.

“Take me to dinner first, at least Minseok,” Baekhyun said.

“Shut up,” the all said at the same time.

Minseok unlocked Baekhyun’s phone and dialed Chanyeol, who picked up after the second ring.   
“Chanyeol, this is Minseok, can you come pick Baekhyun up, I think he’d had a little too much to drink…”

He paused for Chanyeol to reply.

“I don’t know, he says he only had one bottle but it looks like way more than that, he looks like he’s about to pass out,” Minseok replied.

Another pause.

“Great, thank you… Yes, same address…15 minutes? Okay.” Minseok thanked Chanyeol again and hung up the phone.  
“He’ll be here in 15 minutes, let’s take him somewhere else,” Minseok said.

They found empty spots on the living room couches by the front door and took seats, making sure they were surrounding Baekhyun, who was surprisingly following what they were telling him without much difficulty.

With Minseok counting down the minutes until Chanyeol arrived, everyone sat in silence, except for Baekhyun who was making airplane noises like a little five-year-old. They decided not to say anything for the sake of keeping him seated.

Every time the front door would open all of their heads would snap in its direction to see if it was Chanyeol—Sehun and Kai didn’t even know what he looked like, but they would know it if they saw him.

After 10 people had walked in and just over 12 minutes had passed, the door swung open and a tall broad-shouldered man in an all-black suit walked in and whipped his head around all directions until his eyes landed on Baekhyun and he rushed over to him.

“CHANYEOL!” Baekhyun yelled again.

They all went “SHH” at the same time.

Chanyeol’s expression changed once he saw Baekhyun up close and immediately said. “Let me get him to the car.”

Kai looked as if a lightbulb had gone off in his head. “Tall, handsome, deep voice, looks good in a suit?” he whispered to himself.

“Shh,” Baekhyun whispered in his ear after an attempt at a wink.

 

**.            .           .           .**

 

When Chanyeol saw Baekhyun when he went to pick him up he’d been surprised by the blonde hair, it suited him; the younger had obviously dyed it before hence the light brown color but the blonde seemed to give him a different kind of glow. Chanyeol liked it, maybe even more than the brown. But his outfit was what really made Chanyeol stop in his tracks for a spilt second before regaining his composure in front of the young boy. Chanyeol had prayed Baekhyun hadn’t caught him running his eyes up and down his body, mesmerized by how good Baekhyun looked. He had almost slapped himself after he’d thought it.

The party looked suspicious, but nothing he hadn’t himself experienced—except with much cheaper booze and smaller houses. That had made him worry, more money meant more trouble, but he’d grown to trust Baekhyun over the past couple of days. He figured the boy wouldn’t get into too much trouble, maybe get a little drunk and that would be it. What he didn’t expect was to receive a phone call from Minseok saying that Baekhyun looked like he was going to pass out. Chanyeol had immediately grabbed his coat and ran out the door, not even bothering to put on his tie.

He arrived at the party faster than he’d expected and almost burst through the door scanning for Baekhyun and his friends.

Baekhyun yelled, “CHANYEOL!” as he approached and Chanyeol couldn’t help himself but think it was kind of cute.

The boys around him all shushed him as he approached Baekhyun. He definitely looked like he’d had more than one bottle of soju.

“Let me get him to the car,” Chanyeol declared.

The two boys sitting beside Baekhyun, one of which he recognized as his best friend Kim Minseok, helped Baekhyun get up from the couch and transferred him over to Chanyeol, who had to wrap an arm around the smaller boy’s waist to keep him from sitting back down.

“Let’s get you home,” he said to Baekhyun.

“As long as it’s you taking me,” Baekhyun said almost incoherently.

“Yes, it’s me,” Chanyeol said.

“Okay! Bye guys! I had fun. I’ll see you guys on… when am I going to see you guys?” his expression turned sad, “Am I ever going to see you guys again? Oh my God, what if—”

“You’ll see us again, now shut up and go with Chanyeol,” Minseok said before Baekhyun could get any more emotional.

“Chanyeol!” Baekhyun yelled again, back to his joyful state.

“He’s really not okay…” one of the two boys Chanyeol didn’t recognize said.

“Rest well Baekhyun,” the other, who had been sitting beside him, said.

“Thank you, Kim _Kaiii_ ,” Baekhyun said, sing-songing the boy’s name.

“Alright, let’s go,” Chanyeol said. “Thank you boys, I will have him call you tomorrow morning.”

“ _Byeeeee_ ,” Baekhyun said as Chanyeol began walking towards the door.

“Take care of him,” Minseok called.

 

.           .           .

 

Chanyeol couldn’t tell if Baekhyun had fallen asleep or not during the ride home, but he’d gotten very quiet.

“Baekhyun,” he whispered in case the younger was asleep.

Nothing.

“Baekhyun,” he tried again.

Baekhyun didn’t even move, he really had passed out.

Chanyeol stepped out of the car quietly and walked to the other side to get Baekhyun out. He’d put him in the passenger seat to keep an eye on him. He opened the passenger door carefully and reached over Baekhyun to take off his seatbelt. Mindful of all of Baekhyun’s limbs, Chanyeol took Baekhyun out of the car, surprised by how light he was and carried him inside bridal style. Chanyeol did his best to remain quiet and not rouse the sleeping residents of the house.

Right as Chanyeol reached the last step of the staircase he felt Baekhyun shift in his arms. He paused and looked down at Baekhyun.   
“Chanyeol?” Baekhyun asked, the enthusiastic tone from earlier long gone. “Where am I?”

“You’re home Baekhyun,” Chanyeol whispered.

“What? How?” Baekhyun sounded extremely confused.

“You had a little too much to drink,” Chanyeol explained, “you just need some rest.” He continued walking towards Baekhyun’s room.

Baekhyun looked like he was deep in thought.

“Just go back to sleep Baekhyun, you’ll feel better tomorrow.”

By the time Chanyeol placed Baekhyun on his bed he was already fast asleep again. Baekhyun was most likely uncomfortable in his tight skinny jeans so Chanyeol thought it’d be better to change him into his pajamas. He found them carefully folded on the small bench at the foot of Baekhyun’s bed and once again as carefully as he could he began undressing Baekhyun.

He felt to dirty as he did it, to anyone looking from the outside Chanyeol was taking advantage of the young intoxicated boy but Chanyeol would feel bad if he let Baekhyun sleep in his uncomfortable outfit.

The pants were easy to get off and put on but Chanyeol was going to have to be extra careful not to wake Baekhyun up to take off his shirt and put on his pajamas. Chanyeol began with the large denim jacket Baekhyun had on and he managed to get it off without disturbing his sleep.

He debated just letting Baekhyun sleep with the shirt on but the turtleneck might become uncomfortable.

“Baekhyun,” he whispered, waking him up and having Baekhyun help him would be the best and only option, “Baekhyun,” he repeated.

Baekhyun stirred in his sleep and half-opened his eyes.

“Lift up your arms so I can take your shirt off.” Chanyeol cursed at himself. _God that sounded wrong_.

But gratefully Baekhyun was too tired to even process Chanyeol’s words properly so he just lifted up is arms obediently and let Chanyeol take off his shirt and help him into his silk pajama shirt.

“Go back to sleep Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun let out a loud yawn and nodded.

And he was out like a light.

 

**.           .           .         .**

 

Baekhyun felt like someone was hammering his head from how bad his headache was. He could barely focus on his surroundings because his head hurt so much. _What the fuck was in that bottle of soju?_ He couldn’t help but think.

He sat up in his bed slowly, trying not to make any abrupt movements that would make his head explode, and tried to focus his eyes.

The first thing he saw was Chanyeol sitting uncomfortably in his velvet armchair—that was usually piled high with clothes—fast asleep.

Despite his headache Baekhyun smiled at how cute Chanyeol looked while he slept; he looked like he was pouting so adorably.

He stepped out of bed and walked to Chanyeol, not wanting to see him in such an uncomfortable any longer.

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun whispered.

Chanyeol’s eyes flew open at the mention of his name as if he hadn’t even been sleeping causing Baekhyun to take a step back in surprise.

“Baekhyun, you’re awake,” Chanyeol said.

“I am,” Baekhyun said, taking a seat at the bench at the foot of his bed.

Chanyeol got up from the armchair to address Baekhyun. “How are you feeling?” he asked.

Baekhyun leaned back onto the bed. “ _Terrible_ ,” he replied. “The whole world is spinning.”

“Alright, tell me, how much did you _really_ drink?” Chanyeol asked.

“I-I… I don’t know—I-I mean, I don’t remember. I had… one bottle, and then, everything’s just black. The last thing I remember…” his cheeks heated up “was you… carrying me to my room.”

Baekhyun couldn’t see Chanyeol’s expression but from his silence he assumed Chanyeol was in deep thought.

“You don’t remember a single thing?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun sat up. “No, not a single thing.”

He thought back to when he’d first arrived at the party, it had been no later than 10. He hadn’t gone straight to the alcohol, mostly because he didn’t care for hard liquor as much. He’d found Minseok and Jongdae, hung out with them for a while then he remembered making his way outside and getting a bottle of soju from the bar.

Halfway through the bottle things started getting fuzzy, but after he sat down at the bar stool everything went black. He had no memories of what he did after he sat down on the stool.

“Who all was at that party?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun shrugged. “Baseball team, football team, cheerleaders, some other random people from school…”

“Did you know all of them?”

“Yeah, mostly,” Baekhyun said. He wouldn’t say he was the most popular guy at school—he was too antisocial for that—but being the quarterback meant that he was very well known by the student body.

Chanyeol stayed quiet.

Baekhyun looked down at himself and only then realized that he was no longer wearing his party outfit, but instead his teal silk pajamas. His heart began hammering in his chest at the possibility that Chanyeol had been the one to change him.

He sat up and looked down at his hands, too embarrassed to look Chanyeol in the eye.

“Ch-Chanyeol,” damn him for stuttering, he cleared his throat, “D-did you, help me change last night?” He knew his cheeks were red, he felt them burning.

“I wanted you to sleep comfortably,” Chanyeol explained.

“Thank you,” Baekhyun managed without stuttering.

“You’re welcome,” Chanyeol replied. “You must be hungry, I can make you something to eat,” he said before there was an awkward silence between them.

Baekhyun only nodded, not trusting himself with words.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wowie al lot of fun stuff huh?  
> I'd love to heard what you guys think of the fic so far! Leave a comment or feel free to chat with me on instagram @superbaektrash <3


	9. Where Ends Meet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the hardest day out of the year for Baekhyun but Chanyeol is there to help him through it, and maybe they end up discovering things about one another that they had never thought of

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyooo things are getting exciting up in here! ;)  
> There's a lot more going on in this story than just romance you guys ;;;;;)

Baekhyun laid around the rest of Sunday, accompanied by Chanyeol who refused to leave Baekhyun home alone (his parents had gone to a lunch with the president, shocker). Although in fairness, Baekhyun hadn’t made much of an effort to make him leave either.

Chanyeol watched TV with Baekhyun, but he was on his phone most of the time which made Baekhyun overflow with curiosity. Baekhyun hoped Chanyeol hadn’t caught him constantly glancing at him. He wasn’t even paying attention to the TV anymore, he was just trying to not stare at Chanyeol for too long. He looked so good in a suit.

Baekhyun had told him to change, even offered his own clothes since most of them were really big anyways but Chanyeol had politely yet firmly declined and Baekhyun didn’t insist.

He’d called Minseok after breakfast and the elder had promised to stop by later.

His phone vibrated at his side, drawing his attention away from Chanyeol. It was a message from Kim Kai, which was odd since he barely even spoke to the baseball co-captain. His heart skipped 3 beats at the same time once he’d read the message.

_About yesterday, your secret is safe with me you don’t have to worry._

_What secret?_ Baekhyun immediately thought.

“What?” Chanyeol asked, looking up from his phone.

He hadn’t realized he’d spoken out loud.

“Nothing, nothing,” Baekhyun said. He tossed his blanket aside and jumped up from the couch. He needed to get a hold of Kim Kai—fast.

He locked himself in the closest bathroom he saw and dialed Kai’s number.

It went straight to voicemail. He tried one more time but he got the same stupid message from the phone company.

So many things were running through his head. _What did Kai know?_

There was a knock on the bathroom door. “Baekhyun? Is everything okay?” came Chanyeol’s voice.

“I’m fine!” Baekhyun replied.

“Okay, just making sure,” Chanyeol said, “Are you feeling well?”

“Yeah, nothing’s wrong.” He opened the door and stepped out so Chanyeol stopped worrying. “Why don’t we go grab something to eat?” he asked, changing the subject.

“Yeah—” Chanyeol was interrupted by the sound of the front door opening.

“Baekie we’re home! We brought you some food from Soo’s restaurant,” his mom announced.

The two of them walked back to the living room, Baekhyun’s question left unanswered.

“Hey mom, dad,” Baekhyun greeted.

“Oh, I didn’t know Chanyeol was still here, I would’ve brought more food if I’d known,” his mother said.

“It’s fine Mrs. Kim, I was just about to be on my way,” Chanyeol said.

“Are you sure you don’t want to stay? I’m sure there’s plenty for the two of you, Baekhyun doesn’t eat much.”

Chanyeol nodded. “I’m sure, but thank you for the invitation.”

“Very well then, drive safe.”

“I’ll see you tomorrow,” Baekhyun said.

“At 7 o’clock sharp,” Chanyeol said. He bowed politely to the Kims and made his way out.

.           .           .

 

Half way through Baekhyun’s nap he was woken up by a loud knock on his bedroom door.

“Anyone alive in here?” Minseok said after letting himself in.

“What’s the point of knocking if you’re just going to let yourself in?” Baekhyun groaned.

Minseok sat at the edge of his bed. “Aw did I wake the puppy from his nap?”

“Yes,” Baekhyun pouted.

“I’m sorry buddy,” Minseok said, reaching his arm to pinch Baekhyun’s cheeks but Baekhyun slapped his hand away. Minseok only chuckled. “Anyways, I just came to say hi, check on you. Have you been home all day?”

Baekhyun nodded. “Chanyeol stayed with me until my parents got home a couple hours ago.”

“And? What did you guys do?” Minseok sounded curious.

“Nothing, watched TV, but he was on his phone most of the time,” Baekhyun said. “Why are you so interested?”

Minseok shrugged. “Just curious. Anyways, that’s not what I came to ask. How much did you drink last night?”

“Why will no one believe me?! I drank just one bottle then I blacked out!” Baekhyun cried. He was getting frustrated at everyone asking and no one liking his answer.

“So you’re saying you were drugged? At Park Joy’s house?” Minseok asked.

“I don’t know, maybe I was, it would explain why the fuck I don’t remember anything.”

“Who would do that to you Baekhyun? Not a single person in that party had anything against you.”

“I’m just telling you what happened Minseok, if you won’t believe me, fine.”

Minseok sighed. “I’m sorry Baek, I do believe you, and because I do I think we should start looking into this more, it could be something serious.”

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation.

“Baekhyun, it’s your father.”

Minseok raised an eyebrow in question.

Baekhyun shrugged. “Come in dad,” he called.

“Dinner is ready. Minseok, you’re welcome to stay over,” his father said.

“Thank you, Mr. Kim,” Minseok said.

“We’ll be down in a minute,” Baekhyun said.

“Alright, I’ll have another plate put out for Minseok. Don’t take too long.”

“We won’t,” Baekhyun said as his dad stepped back out.

“You think he heard us?” Baekhyun whispered.

 

.           .           .

 

After Minseok has left and his parents had gone to bed Baekhyun remembered to call Kai again. Baekhyun needed to know whatever secret it was that he claimed he could keep safe.

Kai picked up after three rings and muttered a low and scratchy “ _Hello?_ ”

“Kai? It’s Baekhyun. C-can we talk?”

There was a faint “ _Who is it?_ ” coming from the background, whom Baekhyun figured was Sehun.

Kai replied to his boyfriend and returned to Baekhyun. “Yes, of course, just—give me a quick minute.” There was some shuffling around and a “ _Come back to bed_ ” on the other end before Kai told him to go ahead.

“U-um it’s about… the text… from this morning…” Baekhyun said slowly.

“What about it? Do you not trust me?”

“N-no! I mean _no_ it’s not that, it’s just.… _what_ secret were you talking about?”

“Do you not remember anything from yesterday?”

Baekhyun shook his head but then he realized Kai couldn’t see him so he verbalized his no.

“About your bodyguard, how you… like him? Of course I could’ve been mistaken, you were drunk so—”

Baekhyun almost panicked. “ _Yes_ —I mean, yes, you were mistaken, I-I don’t like, um, Chanyeol, of course not… I was drunk, I was probably just rambling...”

“Um… okay?” Kai didn’t sound very convinced but he didn’t question Baekhyun.

“Yeah, um, I’m glad we cleared that up,” Baekhyun said. He could sense the awkwardness between them. “Well, I’ll let you get back to Sehun, I-I’ll see you tomorrow alright?”

“Yeah, see you tomorrow Baek.”

“Bye Kai,” he said and hung up the phone fearing Kai would end up asking more questions. 

 

.           .           .

 

Still fearing nightmares, Baekhyun stayed up well into the morning so that he’d be so tired that he wouldn’t be able to do anything _but_ sleep, and it worked, except he could barely open his eyes the next morning, even after Kyungsoo had opened his blinds and told him to wake up three times—one of which he actually threw Baekhyun over the edge of the bed.

“You’re going to be late for school,” Kyungsoo said, “Chanyeol is already waiting for you.”

The mention of the elder didn’t even faze Baekhyun. He didn’t function properly without at least 6 hours of sleep.

Baekhyun didn’t know how much time has passed until he heard voices not too far from him.

“Is he still asleep?” a deep voice inquired, Baekhyun was too tired to register who it was, although he would guess Chanyeol.

“Yes, I don’t know why, he usually wakes up just fine,” someone else replied—probably Kyungsoo.

“Just let him sleep some more, it’ll be futile to make him go to school like this. I’ll talk to his parents later,” the first voice—Chanyeol—said.

“I’ll let that be your burden to bear then, I have to go to work,” Kyungsoo said.

“I’ll take care of him.”

Kyungsoo’s footsteps receded from the room and Baekhyun heard footsteps coming closer to him.

The next thing he knew Chanyeol was scooping him in his covers up and placing him back on the bed, then he moved to the windows and lowered the blinds.

“I’ll be back to check on you,” Chanyeol whispered and carefully exited the room.

Baekhyun fell back into deep sleep shortly after.

He didn’t know how much time passed but at some point he was carefully awoken by a gentle hand at his shoulder.

“Baekhyun, you’ve slept two more hours, it’s time to wake up,” Chanyeol was saying.

Baekhyun slowly blinked his eyes open, only to be met by Chanyeol’s big black eyes.

“What time is it?” Baekhyun asked, his voice coming out hoarse from sleep.

“A little past 9,” Chanyeol replied.

Baekhyun groaned.

“Was it more nightmares?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun shook his head.

“Working on homework?”

He shook his head again.

“Do you not want to talk about it?”

“I—I just thought… maybe if I was really tired, I wouldn’t have any nightmares,” Baekhyun said at last, not able to look Chanyeol in the eye.

“Baekhyun, don’t do this to yourself,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun fidgeted with his hands. “I know, I-I just, don’t want to witness it anymore. I-It,” his voice cracked as he tried to hold back tears, “it’s horrible.”

The last reaction he’d expected from Chanyeol was for him to wrap his arms around Baekhyun and pull him into a hug.  
“I know it’s hard, but you have to be strong.”

Baekhyun couldn’t describe what he felt when he was in Chanyeol’s arms, but the closest thing he could think of was _safe_. But it was different than anything he’d ever felt, better than any of those “ _I’m sorry for your loss_ ” hugs.

As Chanyeol kept holding onto him he couldn’t hold onto his tears any longer.

“It—it happened today,” he said between sobs, “three years ago, I can remember everything from—th-that day.”

“Shh… it’s okay, I know.” Chanyeol rubbed soothing circles into his back as he cried. He couldn’t bring himself to stop, all he kept seeing was him running underneath the police lines and past all of the police officers and seeing his brother’s dead body before he was pulled away by his father, yelling and crying in anger and sadness.

“Baekbom,” he whispered against Chanyeol’s shoulder, which was becoming increasingly soaked with his tears.

Chanyeol made no move to make him stop crying as if he knew Baekhyun needed to cry it all out.

“It won’t go away but it’ll get easier, I promise,” Chanyeol said. That was the first time Baekhyun had ever heard those words and they were endlessly more comforting than anything he’d ever heard.

Once Baekhyun’s tears began to stop he pulled away from Chanyeol and let the elder gently wipe his tears

“I’ll call the school and tell them you won’t be coming in today,” Chanyeol said. “Why don’t you sleep some more?”

Baekhyun nodded.

 

.           .           .

 

Once Baekhyun woke up for the third time that day, Chanyeol brought him a hot cup of tea in bed and made sure he drank all of it before taking the cup away from him.

“Is there anywhere you like to go when you feel stressed?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun thought for a moment. No one had ever asked him that before…

He shrugged. “Anywhere that doesn’t have many people…” Baekhyun said.

“Do you want to go somewhere?” Chanyeol asked.

“Can we… visit my brother? Take him some flowers?”

Chanyeol nodded. “Of course, we’ll buy him the most beautiful flowers we can find.”

The corner of Baekhyun’s mouth quirked up at Chanyeol’s words; he sounded so sweet and considerate, Baekhyun wished he could see more of this side of Chanyeol.

“Alright then, I’ll leave you to change while I prepare something for you to eat,” Chanyeol said as he stood up. “Take a jacket, I think it’s a bit chilly outside.”

Baekhyun nodded and waited for Chanyeol to silently close the door after leaving to get out of bed.

For once in his life he knew exactly what he was going to wear and exactly where it was.

As he changed into his brother’s hoodie, the only thing his father had allowed him to keep from his brother, he thought of what flowers he’d buy for Baekbom.

He didn’t bother with his hair or face, even though he knew he probably looked like a complete mess and only spared himself a single glance in the mirror before heading downstairs. The green hoodie was too big on him, as all of his things were, and it definitely didn’t look as good on him as it did on Baekbom, but Baekhyun loved it nonetheless.

Chanyeol was placing a pan of omelette beside some tofu onto the table as Baekhyun walked into the kitchen, the pleasant aroma of freshly cooked food filling the room.

“Looks good,” Baekhyun said as he took a seat at the table.

“It’s all yours,” Chanyeol said.

“You aren’t going to eat?” Baekhyun asked, already picking up his chopsticks.

Chanyeol shook his head. “I ate not too long ago.”

“I don’t like eating alone,” Baekhyun pouted. “Can you just sit with me?”

Chanyeol sighed in defeat. “I can’t resist your cute puppy eyes.”

Baekhyun’s face felt like it was in flames. “D-Don’t say t-that,” Baekhyun said through his stutter.

And then he smiled.

The biggest.

And brightest.

And most gorgeous smile Baekhyun had ever seen.

Which didn’t help his undoubtedly bright red face.

Baekhyun bit his lip and looked down at his food, if he looked at Chanyeol’s cute smile any longer he might explode. He focused on the sound of the chair scraping across the floor as Chanyeol pulled it out and sat down.

Baekhyun slowly looked back up at Chanyeol as he reached over to get food.

“H-How do you know how to cook?” He cursed at himself for stuttering again.

“I did culinary school for a while…” Chanyeol explained. “Obviously didn’t work out… but at least I retained some skills.”

Baekhyun nodded his understanding.

Even after Baekhyun had finished eating, him and Chanyeol continued to talk, mostly about school and what Baekhyun wanted to do after he graduated. He was surprised by how easily the conversation flowed out of them. In barely a week Baekhyun had already taken down Chanyeol’s walls and gotten rid of the formal, professional bodyguard he’d initially dreaded.

But Baekhyun remained at a crossroad. He liked Chanyeol, as in he _really liked_ Chanyeol, but he knew it was a very _slim_ chance that something would happen between them beyond a friendship at most, yet at the same time he still hoped that something would blossom eventually.

“Shall we get going?” Chanyeol asked after a while.

Baekhyun nodded.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun asked for the most beautiful bouquet of hydrangeas at the flower shop, Baekbom deserved the best after all. They drove to the cemetery in silence, Baekhyun not wanting to break down, and Chanyeol probably sensing that.

The sun was shining brightly once they arrived and they had to put on their sunglasses.

Baekhyun walked to his brother’s grave in silence, Chanyeol following a few steps behind.

He knelt down in front of the tombstone and laid down the hydrangeas beside another bouquet of fresh flowers. His father had them delivered every year although he could never bring himself to visit the grave himself. Baekhyun wondered if his father had ever visited the grave sight after his brother’s funeral.

“I miss you Bom,” Baekhyun whispered. “I—” he swallowed a sob “I wish you were here.” He paused to keep his tears from falling. “School is good, mom and dad are good—” he closed his mouth before any tears could fall. “I love you,” he whispered.

He ran his fingers through the engravings on the tombstone.

Tears started streaming down his face involuntarily and a few moments later he felt an arm around his shoulders.

“Shh, it’s okay, don’t cry,” Chanyeol whispered. “He wouldn’t want to see you like this.” Something stirred in Baekhyun; Chanyeol’s words rang in his head.

Baekhyun nodded against Chanyeol’s shoulder.

“Can I tell you something?”

Baekhyun looked up at Chanyeol. “What?”

“My sister is also buried here,” Chanyeol said.

“Really?”

Chanyeol nodded. “Do you want to see her?”

“Of course,” Baekhyun said.

They stood up together, and this time with Chanyeol in the lead as they approached another tombstone, it looked a bit older than Baekbom’s but it was still relatively knew. The name _Park Jisoo_ was etched in the center in Korean letters and in Chinese characters underneath.

Something flashed in Baekhyun’s mind, a young boy kneeling down in front of a sleek black coffin, smaller than an average person’s; the boy was crying, his hands holding the coffin with a death-like grip.

His father ushered him forward towards the boy, he must’ve been 18 or 19 years old, 6 or 7 years older than Baekhyun.

He tapped the boy on the shoulder to get his attention. When he turned to look at Baekhyun, he could see that his eyes were red and swollen from crying so much. Baekhyun was holding onto a baby blue handkerchief, which he extended towards to the boy.

The crying boy’s eyes softened, not having expected Baekhyun to give him something.

“ _She would not want to see you like this_ ,” was all Baekhyun had thought to say. “ _Be strong for her_.”

The boy took the handkerchief hesitantly and whispered a short “ _Thank you_ ”

“Have we met before?” Baekhyun asked Chanyeol.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Duhn Duhn Duuuuuhn!!!!  
> New Update coming this week! Stay tuned!


	10. It's a Date, But We're Not Dating

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chanyeol takes Baekhyun out for the day to distract him from thinking about his brother

“What do you mean?” Chanyeol asked, but he looked as if he knew what Baekhyun meant.

“Six years ago, I came to your sister’s funeral. I…” Baekhyun trailed off.

“Why were you at my sister’s funeral?”

“I-I don’t know, I think my dad said it was his friend’s daughter, I-I don’t really remember,” Baekhyun replied.

“I didn’t know our parents knew each other,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun shrugged. “My father knows a lot of people.”

Chanyeol stared off deep in thought.

“You can ask him later, I’m sure he’ll explain it to you,” Baekhyun suggested.

He looked back to Baekhyun. “It’s fine, my father is well known too, I’m sure they worked together at some point,” Chanyeol said.

A silence passed between them and Baekhyun looked back to the tombstone. Of course Chanyeol wouldn’t remember Baekhyun; he had meant nothing to Chanyeol, just someone that had attended his sister’s funeral out of politeness.

“You gave me a handkerchief,” Chanyeol said, breaking the increasingly tense silence. Baekhyun’s head snapped back to Chanyeol, completely taken by surprise by Chanyeol’s statement.  

Chanyeol reached inside his blazer and pulled out a baby blue piece of fabric, identical to the one Baekhyun had handed that crying boy six years ago.

“Y-you still have it?” Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol nodded. “What you said to me that day… it really helped me.”  

Baekhyun didn’t know what to say.

“I always carry it with me to remind myself to be strong… _for her_.” _Exactly what Baekhyun had said to him that fateful day._

Tears welled up in Baekhyun’s eyes, he didn’t know why. Maybe it was the knowledge that he’d made an impact on Chanyeol’s life. Maybe it was fate, maybe fate had brought them together again for a reason.

Chanyeol stepped closer to Baekhyun and put a hand on his shoulders. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

 Baekhyun shook his head and wiped his tears away. “Nothing, I’m just…” He didn’t know how to explain it, but he just felt… _happy._ “Nothing’s wrong,” he said, and he meant it.

“It’s funny how after all these years we met again right? Just in different circumstances,” Chanyeol said, almost as if he’d read Baekhyun’s mind.

Baekhyun nodded in agreement.

“Maybe there’s a reason why we met again, fate even...” Chanyeol said.

“I was thinking the same thing…” Baekhyun said quietly.

Chanyeol’s mouth quirked up in a smile and he gave Baekhyun a wink. “And you were probably thinking I was going to be some short and stubby bodyguard that was going to be following around every day.”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened in shock. “N-no! I-I wasn’t!” he said but his stuttering might’ve given him away. It was as if he couldn’t control his own mouth when he was around Chanyeol.

Chanyeol chuckled. “It’s okay, not many people would expect someone as young as me as a bodyguard, but that’s kind of the whole the point.”

Baekhyun bit his lip guiltily, almost positive his cheeks were tinted pink. “I’m glad it wasn’t some short and stubby guy; I feel much better with _you_ following me around every day.”

Chanyeol smiled again. “I’m glad. Now, what do you say we go grab a bite to eat?”

Baekhyun nodded. “I know this good noodle place nearby.”

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun gave him the directions to a small, modest restaurant close to the cemetery and they sat beside each other in a secluded corner. They each ordered noodles and ate in silence, a peaceful silence. Baekhyun sneaked a few glances at Chanyeol while they ate, and if he hadn’t been mistaken Chanyeol was doing the same—but it might’ve just been wishful thinking.

After Chanyeol had finished his noodles, he pulled out his phone while he waited for Baekhyun to finish, and as always, Baekhyun’s curiosity skyrocketed.

Baekhyun stole a quick glance at his screen, it looked like he was texting someone. He forced himself to not look again. Chanyeol catching him staring at him was one thing, him staring at Chanyeol’s phone would not turn out good.

“I’m sorry, I have to make a call, it shouldn’t take long,” Chanyeol announced.

Baekhyun nodded. “No worries, take your time.”

Chanyeol got up from his seat and moved to an empty area where he wouldn’t be heard.

Baekhyun strained his ears to pick up what Chanyeol was saying—he knew it was wrong, but he just wanted to know if Chanyeol was talking to someone _special_.

Baekhyun picked up a few things, “tomorrow… I’m sorry… talk later… have to go…” but it was enough for him to feed his suspicions.

“Sorry about that,” Chanyeol said once he got back from his phone call. He seemed a bit aggravated, he’d likely been arguing with whoever was on the other end.

Baekhyun looked up from his bowl of noodles. “It’s okay.”

Chanyeol chuckled. “You have a little something,” he said, pointing to the corner of his own mouth.

Baekhyun brushed his lips with the back of his hand. “Did I get it?”

Chanyeol tried to suppress another chuckle. “No… I think you made it worse. Here, let me.” He picked up Baekhyun’s napkin and gently brushed it over Baekhyun’s mouth. Baekhyun froze in his spot, he was afraid Chanyeol could feel how fast his heart was beating, if not he could definitely see Baekhyun’s cheeks turn red. _Is he doing it on purpose?_ Baekhyun thought.

“There,” Chanyeol said, setting the napkin down. He returned to his seat beside Baekhyun, all the while Baekhyun tried to hide his beat-red face.

“What do you feel like doing now?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun covered his face with the sleeve of his hoodie, which was his not-subtle attempt at hiding his blush and turned to Chanyeol. “Let’s go for a walk along the Hangang?” he posed it as a question, in case Chanyeol had any oppositions.

“Of course,” Chanyeol said. “Any spot in particular?”

“Um.. the Color Park? I know it’s a few ways off—”

“Do you take the train or do you prefer to drive?” Chanyeol asked.

“Whatever is fine,” Baekhyun is said.

“For the sake of keeping my job in case your father finds out, we’ll take the car,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun nodded. “Let’s go before traffic gets bad.”

 

.           .           .

 

The drive to the park took a while but it was nice, they listened to music and talked the whole ride, there was not a dull moment.

Baekhyun felt that Chanyeol kept talking him to distract him—it worked. Baekhyun’s thoughts hadn’t drifted to his brother even once since they left the cemetery.

“I used to come here all the time when I was little,” Baekhyun said as they neared the park. “Mostly with Kyungsoo—who was my nanny at the time. I always liked disobeying him and playing in the water. He would get so mad at me,” he laughed just thinking about it.

Chanyeol laughed along. “I can imagine… I used to come here too, mostly with my sister. She’d force me to play tea time with her and her friends.” He spoke fondly of the memory and Baekhyun couldn’t help but smile.

“You must really miss her,” Baekhyun said.

“Every once in a while, my heart aches…” Chanyeol said. “But I know she’s in a better place, and I’m sure your brother is watching over her for me.”

Baekhyun yearned for Chanyeol to reach out and take his hand, to comfort him, to give him something to _physically_ hold on to, but he knew they weren’t quite close enough for that yet.

Chanyeol found a parking spot near the park and they headed out.

“Did you put sunscreen on?” Chanyeol asked and Baekhyun was touched by his concern.

Baekhyun nodded.

“Do you have something underneath your hoodie, you might get hot,” Chanyeol went on.

“So will you in your suit,” Baekhyun said, “you know, you don’t have to be so formal when my dad’s not around. I hate when he makes me wear suits.” Baekhyun made sure to pout cutely when he spoke the last sentence.

Chanyeol chuckled. “I’m used to it.”

“How long have you been a bodyguard?” Baekhyun asked.

“Four years, give or take,” Chanyeol replied.

“Not a long time… how did my father hire you?” Baekhyun hoped he wasn’t being rude.

“I served in the military right out of high school and developed a good reputation there, I guess he liked that…” Chanyeol shrugged, “I didn’t speak with him much, the agency usually does most of the hiring and they don’t tell me much.”

Baekhyun thought back to Chanyeol’s sister’s funeral. _Maybe Father already knew him…_

They walked along the river together, chatting about everything and nothing. Baekhyun’s heart filled with content, happy that Chanyeol was taking his time to distract Baekhyun from his emotions. They both eventually shed their jackets—Chanyeol was still undoubtedly hot in his button up but he wouldn’t take it off, saying it would be too unprofessional of him.

His father was surprisingly already home when they arrived late in the afternoon; it was unusual for him to arrive home before Baekhyun got out of school.

Chanyeol stopped the car in front of the door but didn’t turn it off.

“Since your father is home, would you mind if I left early?”

A million thoughts flew through Baekhyun’s head, _Is he tired of me? Did I annoy him? Why does he want to leave?_

“I just have a few issues I’d like to resolve before it’s late,” Chanyeol explained as if he’d read Baekhyun’s mind. “Did you enjoy today?”

Baekhyun nodded enthusiastically. “Very much. Thank you Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol smiled that gorgeous smile again. “I’m glad. I’ll see you tomorrow Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun nodded.

 

.           .           .

 

His father was locked in his office when Baekhyun walked in and had probably not even noticed that Baekhyun had arrived. He snuck to his room quietly nonetheless and jumped onto the bed.

He couldn’t describe what he was feeling, it was a mix of immense happiness and butterflies in his stomach, and nervousness, and content. He couldn’t stop smiling at the ceiling.

_I’m in love_ , he realized after a moment.

“I’m in love with Chanyeol,” he whispered.

That changed things. It changed _everything_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *shocker*


	11. A Beast With A Pretty Face

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun wakes up to noises coming from his father's office so he goes and investigates

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A tad bit late I'm so sorry!!   
> Things are starting to move along and get more intense <3

He laid on his bed for maybe _hours_ thinking about his day with Chanyeol. His _date_ with Chanyeol. He giggled at the thought. _I went on a date with Chanyeol._ Basically _._

He suddenly felt the urge to text Chanyeol, to flirt with him, to _kiss_ him _._

He let out a sigh. “If this is cloud 9 I never want to get back to earth.”

He turned over into his side and stared at his phone laying beside him. _A simple “hey” wouldn’t do any harm_ , he thought.

He hesitated for a minute but eventually reached for his phone and texted Chanyeol _Hey!_ before he could change his mind. He hoped for a quick reply but his phone had gone dark on him three times while he waited for a reply before he gave up and set his phone down.

As always, a million thoughts began running through his head. _Maybe Chanyeol doesn’t like him, maybe he thought Baekhyun was annoying, maybe he was just being polite earlier._

_Maybe he has a girlfriend._

The last thought worried him the most.

_Maybe he’s straight._ Then Baekhyun _really_ didn’t have a chance.

As he let out an exasperated sigh his phone began vibrating with an incoming call from Minseok.

“Hey,” Baekhyun said.

“Baekhyun, you _missed out_ today, Luhan got beat up by Sehun in the locker room,” was the first thing Minseok said.

Baekhyun let out a chuckle. “I bet he deserved it.”

“Oh I don’t know, for a quick second I felt bad for him,” Minseok replied.

“What did he get beat up for in the first place?” Baekhyun asked.

“Sehun caught him giving him and Kai some weird looks when they were… well, you know them.”

“I can imagine… He probably did deserve it though.”

A moment of silence passed it between them.

“Hey Baek?” Minseok sounded cautious.

“Yeah?”

“Are you doing okay?” Baekhyun knew exactly what Minseok was talking about.

“I’d started to think you hadn’t even noticed my absence,” Baekhyun teased.

Minseok chuckled on the other end of the line. “Kim Baekhyun, trust me, it’s hard to notice your absence.”

“I’m going to take that as a compliment,” Baekhyun said.

“It was,” Minseok said, “but back to my question, how are you?”

“I’m, fine—great, actually. I… spent the day with Chanyeol. We left flowers for Baekbom, had lunch, then we walked down the Hangang at the Color Park, it was really nice. I think he was trying to get my mind off things…”

“It sounds like it worked.”

“It did,” Baekhyun said, “really well actually…”

“You sound happy Baek.”

“I-I am, Baekbom is in a good place now, I know that.”

“I’m glad. Alright well, I gotta go shower then eat dinner, do you have anything else you wanna talk about before I go?”

“Y-yeah, um, Min…” He thought of a way he could as about how he could ask for advice about his Chanyeol situation without giving any explicit details.

“Yes, Baekhyun?”

“Uh—never mind, never mind.” Minseok knew Baekhyun too well, there was no way he was going to be able to lie to his best friend, more than he already was.

“What is it Baek? You can tell me.”

“Nothing—it’s nothing, really, I figured it out.”

“Alright…” Minseok didn’t sound convinced. “I’ll call you later okay?”

“Yeah, okay.”

Baekhyun’s heart was racing by the time he got off the phone with Minseok. He couldn’t stand lying to Minseok, but he felt that he had no choice, it was too risky. If his father even heard a word of it Baekhyun was afraid he’d get kicked out in the blink of an eye. His father had voiced his open hate for homosexuality, even influenced the president to not pass any pro same-sex marriage legislation, although that had changed after the president had found out about his own son’s sexuality, but Baekhyun’s father hadn’t changed his opinion.

He laid on his bed contemplating it, but ultimately deciding after some thinking to keep it a secret for a little while longer, or until something _actually_ happened between him and Chanyeol. Which was close to impossible anyways.

He got up from the bed and headed downstairs towards the kitchen in hopes that dinner would be ready.

Halfway down the stairs, he saw his father storming across the living room coming from his office announcing that he had some unfinished business to take care of and would be back later.

Baekhyun found it weird that his father wasn’t even carrying his briefcase but didn’t bother stopping to question it.

“Kyungsoo is dinner ready?” he announced as he walked into the kitchen.

“Almost,” Kyungsoo said as he stirred something at the stove. He set down the spoon and turned to face Baekhyun. “What did you do today?” he inquired.

“Stuff,” Baekhyun said.

“None of that _stuff_ being going to school I assume…” Kyungsoo said, arms crossed over his chest as if he was scolding his son for skipping school.

“Chanyeol took me to see Baekbom, after that we went to grab lunch then we walked down the Hangang…” Baekhyun avoided looking Kyungsoo in the eye.

“So you two went on a date?”

Baekhyun’s eyes widened. “ _Do Kyungsoo_! Don’t—” he lowered his voice “—don’t say things like that so loud.”

“You’re not denying it,” Kyungsoo said.

“Of course not! That’s ridiculous! I don’t… think of him that way—a-and he doesn’t think of _me_ that way.”

Kyungsoo chuckled. “Okay, okay, I won’t entertain any more possibilities… But you had fun at least?”

Baekhyun nodded. “Chanyeol’s sister is in the same cemetery as Baekbom.”

“Interesting…” Kyungsoo muttered, turning back his attention to the food on the stove

“Hello Baekie,” his mother greeted as she walked into the kitchen, “Kyungsoo.”

“Hello Ms. Kim,” Kyungsoo greeted.

“Hey mom,” Baekhyun said, accepting a brief hug from his mother.

“How was school today Baek?” his mother asked.

“Good,” Baekhyun lied, “I-I got some homework to do so I’m gonna go.”

“But—dinner, Baek,” his mother called, but Baekhyun was already out of the kitchen.

Baekhyun tossed his clothes on the bed as he walked into his room and jumped into the shower.

His father still hadn’t come home by the time he walked out of his steaming bathroom, which was unusual. His father had a strict no-working-past-7 policy and it was nearing 9 o’clock. Baekhyun thought nothing of it and decided to go to bed, hoping for dreams with Chanyeol.

 

.           .           .

 

He was startled awake from a dream in which Chanyeol was at the beach with him, in all his 8-pack glory, by a loud crashing sound coming from downstairs.

Baekhyun sprang out of bed and went to look for the source of the noise.

There was another loud noise, which sounded like glass breaking, coming directly from his father’s office, who’s door was ajar and light was spilling out into the hallway.

Baekhyun quickened his steps and approached the door quietly. _Were his parents fighting again?_ But he didn’t hear any voices.

He peeked inside the office but all he could see was his father’s back, which was rising up and down with deep breaths.

Suddenly Baekhyun was startled by a loud roar coming from his father as he picked up a whiskey glass on the table beside him and threw it with incredible force at the door behind him.

Baekhyun yelped in shock and jumped back.

His father’s angry features softened lightly as he peered through the crack in the door to see who had caught him.

“ _Baekhyun_?” he inquired.

Baekhyun stayed silent. His father walked to the door and swung it open. “What are you doing here?” he growled, causing Baekhyun to take another step back in fear.

“I-I heard something,” he squeaked. With the door now fully open he could see the havoc that had wreaked inside his father’s office. Paintings hung crookedly, glass shards littered the floor, papers were scattered everywhere. “W-what’s going on? _What happened_ _to you_?” he asked once he noticed his father’s bloodied lip and eyebrow. “Dad—”

He reached out to examine his dad’s face, but his hand retracted at his dad’s words. “Nothing. Go back to bed,” his father ordered.

“D-dad, you can talk to me, I-I know this is a hard day for you.”

“ _Go back to bed_ ,” his father snapped. “This doesn’t concern you.”

Baekhyun gulped. His father had _never_ spoken to him like that, it scared him more than any fight his parents had ever had.

His father seemed to notice that he was scaring his son and softened his voice. “We’ll talk tomorrow, Baek, I’m sorry. Just go.”

Baekhyun nodded and accepted defeat. He wouldn’t be able to get through to his father in this state.

“Good night…” Baekhyun whispered and retreated back to his room without hearing his father’s response.

 

.           .           .

 

He slept intermittently, ever other hour waking up thinking his father was at it again but it was just his head. When he woke up around 4 am he decided to sneak to his dad’s office and see how much damage his dad had done. He made sure he was being extremely quiet in case his father was still awake or had fallen asleep in his office—it tended to happen often.

Baekhyun pushes the door open carefully and took a peak inside. His father was passed out on the black leather couch, wounds untended. Baekhyun slipped inside carefully and looked around the office—it looked like a tornado had swept through it. There were papers everywhere, shards of glass on the floor, his table overturned, his computer knocked over.

Baekhyun ventured inside, eyes looking at every corner. He walked around the office, carefully watching where he stepped. He picked up a few stranded sheets and examined the documents. They were the same documents inside his brother’s file. He rushed eagerly to another sheet and picked it up, scanning the words on it.

At his next step, which he hadn’t been looking to where he was going he felt a sharp pain on the bottom of his foot, and couldn’t hold himself back from letting out a loud cry.

His father was startled from his sleep, frantically looking around.

“ _Baekhyun_ ,” he said once his eyes landed on his son. At the sight of Baekhyun’s pained expression he sprang up from the couch and ran to his son.

“Baekhyun what happened?”

Baekhyun’s put his hands on his father’s shoulders to steady himself.

“Glass… foot…” Baekhyun stammered.

His father immediately understood and scooped up Baekhyun with surprising ease and set him down gently on the couch.

“ _Baekhyun_.” He sounded so worried and caring, different from the how angry and raging he was just hours before.

“Dad, it hurts,” Baekhyun rasped out. Tears pooled in his eyes.

“I’m taking you to the hospital,” his father declared.

“N-no no, just do it yourself, I don’t think it’s that bad,” Baekhyun said with heavy breaths between his words.

“Baekhyun I’m not a doctor,” his father said. Baekhyun didn’t protest any further. “I’m going to pull up the car then I’ll come get you.”

Baekhyun nodded.

“ _Don’t_ mess with it.”

It didn’t take long for his father to run back into the office and pick Baekhyun up again and rush him out to the car and hand him two painkillers once he was situated in his seat.

“What were you doing in my office again?” his father asked once they’d gotten on the road.

“I-I just wanted to know what you were so mad about…” Baekhyun said in a hushed tone.

“Baekhyun, I don’t want you worrying about my problems—”

“It’s about Baekbom isn’t it?” Baekhyun interrupted. “All those papers, they’re from his case, aren’t they? Is there something you’re not telling me?”

“It is,” his father confessed, “but it’s nothing you need to worry about. There’s nothing new about it.”

“But there’s documents that I’ve never seen before—”

“ _Enough Baekhyun_. Don’t bring up your brother’s case again, do you understand me?”

Baekhyun gulped. “Yes, sir.” He stayed quiet the rest of the ride to the hospital.

 

.           .           .

 

The wound hadn’t been deep and only needed two stitches, he’d be fine in a week if he didn’t mess with it. His father called the school and said he wouldn’t be going as well as Coach Yixing to say he wouldn’t be going to practice the rest of the week.

“What about Chanyeol?” Baekhyun asked when his father brought him his breakfast the next morning.

“I’ve already called him and told him to come in a bit later today. I’m going to take the morning off and spend time with you, are you okay with that?” his father said.

Baekhyun nodded.

His father rustled his hair affectionately causing Baekhyun to smile in between a mouthful of rice. “Good, I’ll be back in a few minutes okay?”

“Okay,” Baekhyun said cheerfully.

Baekhyun was even more curious about the files now that he was sure his father was hiding something from him. After his father left he planned on going back into the office to find the papers even though he was almost sure his father had either locked his office or, which would be worse, he had taken the file with him.

By the time he finished his breakfast his father had come back into his room and suggested they watch a movie together.

They decided on a movie they both liked but halfway through it his father excused himself claiming he had an important phone call to make. Baekhyun wasn’t surprised. He didn’t mind it though, the sooner his father left the sooner he could snoop around in his office—and see Chanyeol of course.

His father peaked his head inside the TV room. “Baek, I’m really sorry but the president needs me, I’ll make it up to you okay?” His father smiled apologetically.

Baekhyun nodded. “I understand Dad, duty calls.”

“Oh, and, Chanyeol is on his way,” his father added.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to chat with you guys so hit me up on twitter @superbaektrash or leave a comment below <3


	12. Coming Out

Baekhyun waited for Chanyeol in his room but even after he heard the front door open Chanyeol never showed up in his room.

Baekhyun pouted. He didn’t feel like getting up—he wasn’t _supposed_ to be getting up but he wanted to see Chanyeol.

He carefully stepped out of bed, putting more pressure on his uninjured foot and partially holding onto the bed for support until he could balance himself.

With an obvious limp, Baekhyun made his way downstairs looking for Chanyeol.

“Chanyeol?” he called halfway down the stairs.

“Downstairs,” came Chanyeol’s curt reply. _That_ didn’t sound good.

Supporting himself on the railing, Baekhyun walked the rest of the way down the stairs.

Chanyeol was sitting on an armchair in the living room completely still, his expression neutral—but more to the angry side. It kind of scared Baekhyun a bit.

“C-Chanyeol?” Baekhyun squeaked.

Chanyeol looked up and noticed him leaning heavily onto the railing. His expression immediately changed. “Baekhyun what happened?”

“Ah-ah—nothing!” Baekhyun said, trying to sound like everything was fine.

Chanyeol stood up and was over to Baekhyun in three long strides.

“What happened to your foot?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun scratched the back of his head. “N-Nothing, really, j-just a little glass got stuck in my foot.”

“Glass? How?” His eyes were filled with worry.

“Long story…”

“Here, let me help you,” Chanyeol said, crouching a bit so Baekhyun could lean onto him.

Hesitantly, Baekhyun wrapped his arm around Chanyeol’s shoulder and leaned into him a bit. Baekhyun was already anticipating Chanyeol’s hand on his waist but it didn’t stop him from freezing at the feeling of Chanyeol’s strong calloused hand on his skinny waist.

“Have you eaten?” Chanyeol asked while they walked together to the living room couch.

Baekhyun nodded, not trusting himself to speak.

The few steps it took to reach the couch felt like an eternity. Every part of his body that was touching Chanyeol felt like it was on fire. And it felt like a bath of cold water when Chanyeol finally let go of him and sat down across from him.

“How about you tell me what happened?”

“My dad—h-he was having this fit…a-and he broke some glass, and I… I accidentally stepped on a shard—it was small though,” he blurted so Chanyeol didn’t have time to panic, “he took me to the ER and I just got two stitches.”

“And you just walked all the way down here with two stitches on the bottom of your foot?”

Baekhyun was surprised by Chanyeol’s question. “Y-yes?”

Chanyeol sighed. “Why would you do that? Let me look at it to make sure you didn’t make it worse.” He extended his hand towards Baekhyun’s injured foot.

Baekhyun hesitated. He didn’t want Chanyeol looking at his foot, what if it was dirty? What if it smelled bad? What if Chanyeol thought his foot was ugly?

“Baekhyun, I just want to make sure you’re okay.”

Baekhyun lifted his foot up slowly and placed it delicately onto Chanyeol’s awaiting palm.

Baekhyun melted at the gentleness in which Chanyeol unwrapped the bandage from around his foot.

Baekhyun could see a small splotch of blood on the bandage once Chanyeol had completely unwrapped it from his foot but it didn’t look too bad.

“It really isn’t that big…” Baekhyun started to zone out okay, his eyes drifting to Chanyeol’s face, then his body… He sighed inwardly _God he’s so sexy_.

Chanyeol finished with “…okay Baekhyun?” and he looked back up to Baekhyun.

Baekhyun snapped out of his thoughts and nodded as if he’d been paying attention.

“Baekhyun, were you even listening to me?”

“Y-yeah, of course! I understand.”

Chanyeol rose an eyebrow but he didn’t question him any further.

Baekhyun opened his mouth to start a conversation but Chanyeol phone began ringing and Chanyeol checked his screen. Whoever was calling made him roll his eyes. “I have to get this, it shouldn’t take long.” He sounded annoyed and aggravated.

He stood up and walked to the edge of the staircase where he was out of earshot.

Baekhyun leaned back in his seat and tried not to focus on Chanyeol’s whispered conversation—which he could barely hear anyways, but not very long into the conversation Chanyeol suddenly raised his voice and snarled, “ _Stop calling me_.” Baekhyun was completely taken aback by Chanyeol’s tone, he didn’t know what someone deserved to be spoken to that way.

“I’m sorry,” Chanyeol said, “I won’t be taking any more phone calls from now on.”

Baekhyun decided not to comment on Chanyeol’s conversation, which would force him to admit he’d been eavesdropping.  

Chanyeol seemed as agitated—or even more so—as when Baekhyun had first seen him. Whoever he’s _been_ talking to has been fighting with him, of that Baekhyun was certain. The only questions that remained were who was he talking to and what were they fighting about?

“You should not put any pressure at all on your foot today and keep the bandage off, let it breathe a little.”

Baekhyun thought of something to say to ease the mood. “Let’s… watch a movie?”

“Hm? Yeah, sure. Anything you want.” He didn’t sound very enthusiastic but at least he hadn’t rejected the suggestion.

 

.           .           .

 

After helping Baekhyun back up to his room, almost giving him a heart attack when Chanyeol picked him up and carried him up the stairs, they laid on Baekhyun’s bed and browsed for a movie to watch. They decided on a classic historical drama and began watching. Chanyeol’s phone vibrated in his pocket a few times but he would mute it before even seeing the caller ID.

As the movie went on Baekhyun felt his eyes grow heavier, he forced himself to stay awake but his eyes eventually closed and he fell blissfully asleep.

When he woke up, he felt himself rising and falling, almost as if he was resting on someone’s chest. He blinked his eyes open and his brain began functioning again.

It was only after he lifted his head that he realized where he’d been sleeping peacefully.

When he looked to Chanyeol, the elder was fast asleep, his head resting uncomfortably against the headboard, an arm on his stomach, the other one—Baekhyun belatedly realized—was resting on the small of Baekhyun’s back.

Baekhyun sat up slowly, trying to not wake up Chanyeol, but as soon as Chanyeol’s hand fell to the mattress his opened.

“Chanyeol, I-I’m sorry I woke you up,” Baekhyun stammered.

Chanyeol covered his mouth as he let out a yawn. “No, you’re fine, I shouldn’t have fallen asleep.”

“You must’ve been tired though…” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol shrugged. “Didn’t get much sleep last night.”

Baekhyun refrained from asking why. “Did you finish the movie?”

Chanyeol shook his head.

“I-I’m gonna go take a shower,” Baekhyun announced.

Chanyeol gave a nod as Baekhyun got up from the bed.

Baekhyun was sure his cheeks were pink from having it rested on Chanyeol’s chest. He wondered for how long he had slept—how long _Chanyeol_ had slept. How long had they been sleeping peacefully together? With Baekhyun’s feelings now clear, just being in contact with Chanyeol brought butterflies to his stomach.

He took a cold shower to cool down and when he walked back out—in his towel—Chanyeol had made the bed and was outside on his balcony leaning onto the railing. Baekhyun took advantage of the fact that Chanyeol wasn’t looking and ran to his closet to change.

 

.           .           .

 

The next morning, Baekhyun was woken up by Kyungsoo, who had already laid out Baekhyun’s uniform and was holding a tray with his breakfast.

“Good morning Soo,” Baekhyun announced, and flashed Kyungsoo a smile. He woke up in a good mood after dreaming of Chanyeol, again.

“Wow, someone’s in a good mood… Is it because your parents are leaving for China for a week?”

“Among other things you could say…” Baekhyun said teasingly. He could still feel Chanyeol’s hands on him from the dream, it had been so vivid, he was disappointed to find out it had only been a dream when he woke up.

“Your father left early this morning and said he’d be home late so Chanyeol will be staying a bit later today, make sure to remind him.”

“Of course…” Baekhyun said, trying to not sound too giggly.

“I’m sure you’re happy about that,” Kyungsoo said.

“ _Very_ much…” Baekhyun said without even thinking.

Kyungsoo chuckled.

Baekhyun snapped back into reality, the bliss of the dream now gone. “I-I mean, no no, it, it’s whatever…” Kyungsoo looked at him, eyebrow raised. Baekhyun sighed and laid back down. “I hate that I can’t lie to you…”

“I’ve known you for too long,” Kyungsoo said. “I can read you like an open book.”

“Then what do I do Soo? I really like him…” It was useless hiding it from Kyungsoo anymore. He must’ve known the entire time anyways.

“Just tell him that,” Kyungsoo said.

“What if… what if he’s… _straight_?” Baekhyun asked.

“Then he’ll tell you that, no harm done.” He sounded so casual, Baekhyun was surprised he wasn’t panicking over Baekhyun’s sexuality.

“H-how do you sound so cool about this?” Baekhyun asked slowly.

Kyungsoo smiled fondly as he sat down at the edge of Baekhyun’s bed. “Baekhyun, I’ve basically raised you, I know you better than you know yourself.”

“S-so you knew? Th-this whole time?”

“Of course I knew, Baekhyun. I’ve noticed how you look at guys differently than you look at girls, how you always talk more about guys than girls, how you’ve never openly boasted about having a girlfriend. It’s the small things that only someone very close to you would notice.”

Baekhyun swallowed. “So you think Minseok and Jongdae know too?”

“Of course they do, they’ve just been waiting for you to tell them. You don’t need to hide who you are from them, they love you no matter what.”

Baekhyun pulled the covers over his face to hide his reddening cheeks. “Have I been obvious?” he asked from underneath the covers.

“If those are other words for, _do my parents know_? Then no, they likely have no idea.”

Baekhyun was silent.

“Baekhyun, stop sulking. You have to go get ready.”

“Just give me a few minutes.” His voice came out muffled due to the covers over his mouth.

“Alright, fine, but I’m not letting you get to school late today. I’ll be back to check on you,” he called before slipping out and closing the door.

“ _Just tell him that_ ,” he echoed Kyungsoo’s words. “I can’t just—ugh, whatever…” Baekhyun threw the covers off of him and locked himself in his bathroom.

Standing in front of the mirror he practiced what to say. “Chanyeol, I—no, no,no—Chanyeol, you—ugh, no—I like you— _no_ , that’s too much—Chanyeol—”

“You okay in there?” came Kyungsoo’s voice.

“Wha—yeah, yeah, fine,” Baekhyun replied. He sped through his morning routine and rushed to change.

“I’m ready,” he called as he ran down the steps.

“You’re almost late,” Kyungsoo called, “Chanyeol is waiting in the car.”

Baekhyun took his backpack from Kyungsoo and rushed outside.  
“Oh, and Baekhyun—”

Baekhyun turned back to the elder. “Yes?”

“He seems to be in a bit of a foul mood…”

Baekhyun sighed. “Thanks…”  

One glimpse of Chanyeol and Baekhyun _knew_ he was in a foul mood. His expression was static, emotionless, with just a hint of _pure rage_.

Baekhyun was silent the entire ride, Chanyeol didn’t even utter a good morning. Baekhyun knew it had nothing to do with him but he couldn’t help but feel it was his fault.

All he got was a quick, “ _Have a good day_ ” when they arrived at the school.

Baekhyun wondered what had made him so mad that morning.

“Baekhyun!” he heard someone yell from somewhere near the school’s entrance. Baekhyun cringed from embarrassment.

Moments later he was tackled by Minseok and Jongdae into a massive hug.

“We missed you,” Minseok said into his neck.

“I was only gone for two days—and you saw me the other day,” Baekhyun said.

“But school’s not the same without you,” Jongdae said, detaching from the hug, while Minseok stayed glued to Baekhyun.

“Minseok, people are starting to stare, stop it,” Baekhyun urged.

Minseok finally let go of Baekhyun and brushed off the wrinkles on his uniform.

“What happened to your foot?” Minseok asked, noticing the white wrap reaching up to his ankle.

Baekhyun gave a one shouldered shrug. “Just a little cut. Don’t worry about it.” He was in no mood to explain his dad’s rage outburst.

Minseok was on the verge of asking when Jongdae changed the subject. “Was that Chanyeol?” he asked.

Baekhyun only nodded.

Jongdae and Minseok exchanged a look.

“What?” Baekhyun asked.

“You tell us, is something wrong?” Minseok asked.

“Why do you ask?” Baekhyun’s heart rate picked up although he didn’t know why.

“Nothing, never mind,” Jongdae said and for that Baekhyun was thankful.

The two boys placed their arms over Baekhyun’s shoulder and began walking towards the school building.

 

.           .           .

 

At lunch they were joined by Sehun and Kai at their table.

“Hey,” Baekhyun said, “what brings you guys around?”

“They’ve been sitting with us this week,” Minseok explained.

“Oh, nice.” Baekhyun hoped that it wasn’t obvious that he was avoiding Kai’s gaze.

“Why weren’t you here these past days Baekhyun?” Sehun asked.

Baekhyun looked up from his food and opened his mouth to answer but was cut off by Minseok. “It’s a tough _time of year_ …” Realization washed over Sehun’s face.

“Oh, my bad Baek…” he said apologetically.

“It’s fine, um… I got my mind off of it…” Baekhyun said.

“You mean _Chanyeol_ got your mind off of it,” Minseok teased.

Baekhyun’s hand froze halfway to his mouth and he elbowed Minseok in the stomach. “ _Shut up_ ,” Baekhyun snapped but he knew he had started to blush.

Minseok only chuckled.

“So what’s up with this Chanyeol guy?” Sehun asked and Kai gave him a stern look that said _Don’t ask._

“What? Is Baekhyun not—” It was Sehun’s turn to get elbowed in the ribs by his boyfriend.

“Not…not, _what_?” Baekhyun mumbled.

“Ow, nothing, forget I said anything,” Sehun said, rubbing his side.

Baekhyun started collecting his things. “I-I’m gonna go…”

“Baek, wait,” Minseok protested, but Baekhyun had already gotten up and begun to walk away, pretending he hadn’t heard the other boy.

He started to panic and his cheeks started heating up. _They know_ , he thought. _Who else_ —

A hand on his shoulder interrupted his thoughts.

“Baekhyun.” It was Kai. “Do you want to talk?”

“Please don’t tell anyone,” Baekhyun whispered.

“No, never,” Kai said, “it’s your decision, but Baekhyun, we all support you. You don’t have to be afraid.”

Baekhyun glanced around, hoping no one was very close to them. “It, it’s not you guys…”

“Oh, right, your parents…” Kai looked conflicted as what to say next.

“You don’t have to feel sorry for me, I can deal with it on my own.” He had to focus on his words so he wouldn’t start crying in the middle of the hallway, but Kai must have noticed his lips trembling.

“Let’s go somewhere else,” Kai said, and this time Baekhyun didn’t protest. Kai wrapped an arm around his shoulder, towering over Baekhyun’s tiny shrunken frame. He steered Baekhyun somewhere, although he wasn’t paying attention to where.

He only looked up from the floor when he was sure they had entered an empty classroom and Kai had detached from him.

“I know how you’re feeling, it’s normal,” was the first thing Kai said.

“I—I…” Baekhyun didn’t know what to say. “I’ve known for so long but…but…I just…can’t…” Baekhyun spoke slowly, piecing his thoughts together as he did.

Kai’s hand on his shoulder was oddly comforting. “We’re here for you Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun nodded, and finally let go of the tears he was holding. Kai’s arms were around him in an instant and his tears were rolling down his cheeks and landing on Kai’s clothed shoulder.

He couldn’t decide if he was crying happy tears or sad tears. He chose to believe they were happy tears. He felt a weight being lifted off of his chest.

“I don’t want to hide anymore,” he whispered.

When Kai pulled away he was smiling fondly. “I’m assuming those are happy tears.”

Baekhyun’s smile matched Kai’s as he nodded. “I want to tell the others.”

Kai delicately wiped his tears and brushed a hand through his hair. “I’ll tell them to come here.” Kai pulled out his phone and typed out a quick text and before there was even time for Sehun to type a reply the door swung open and the three other boys piled inside.   
“Oh Baekie!” Minseok was the first to tackle him into a hug, shortly followed by Jongdae and Kai, then lastly by Sehun who had seemed a bit awkward at first.

“Guys, let him breathe,” Sehun said after he’d detached from the hug.

The other three let go of Baekhyun and took a step back.

“I-I have to tell you guys something…” he started.

“You’re gay, we know,” Sehun said, which was shortly followed by a loud smack from Kai. “Ow! What? It’s what he was gonna say—we all knew it.” Another smack.

“ _Hush_ , let him have his moment,” Kai snapped, “Baekhyun, please pretend he never said that.”

Baekhyun thought someone must’ve released laughing gas inside the room because suddenly they all erupted in laughter and couldn’t stop, as if they were high on life itself.

Once they’d calmed down, they all turned their attention back to Baekhyun and waited for him to speak.

“Yes, yes, I’m gay, I admit it.”

Another wave of laughter passed and they all embraced him in another tight hug.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though nothing sexy or super funny happens in this chapter it's got to be one of my favorites. Even though I don't share the same experiences as Baekhyun in this story I felt very emotional writing this, I have connected with the characters that I've created so much so it was very satisfying to see my own characters experience some happiness and relief. If you guys are ever struggling with something and just want to talk to someone my dms are always open on Instagram and Twitter @superbaektrash


	13. If This Is a Dream Don't Wake Me Up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chanyeol and Baekhyun talk  
> And more

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> THE MOMENT EVERYONE HAS BEEN WAITING FOR  
> BARABIM BARABUM
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> ZIMZALABIM

Chanyeol was waiting for Baekhyun right in front of the doors of the school, windows rolled up, _probably still in a mood_ , Baekhyun suddenly remembered. His elated spirit from earlier in the day slightly diminished as he was faced with his initial issue from that morning.

He opened the passenger door hesitantly and stepped inside the car wordlessly, carefully eyeing Chanyeol’s profile for any shift in his mood.

“Hi,” Baekhyun said after Chanyeol didn’t so much as move an inch.

“Hi,” came Chanyeol’s curt reply.

An odd smell swept through Baekhyun’s nose but he couldn’t quite pinpoint what it was.

Judging from Chanyeol’s tone and his curt reply he was in no mood to talk so Baekhyun didn’t even attempt to start a conversation.

It gave him time as they drove home to identify the weird smell coming from Chanyeol.

“Have you been drinking?” he asked suddenly once he realized Chanyeol smelled like alcohol.

“I’m fine,” came another curt reply. The smell was too faint to assume Chanyeol was drunk, and his driving seemed perfect, so Baekhyun wasn’t too worried, but now Baekhyun was _really_ curious as to what the reason for Chanyeol’s day drinking was.

Baekhyun finally worked up the courage to ask, “Chanyeol, what happened?”

Chanyeol was quiet for a second, and Baekhyun thought maybe he hadn’t heard him or if he had he’d just chosen to ignore it, but then, Chanyeol took a deep breath and started slowly, the rage in his voice mostly gone. “My—” he paused for a second “My girlfriend and I… we’re over…”

Baekhyun wished he could’ve said he was surprised but he’d picked up on the signs. He didn’t know what to say; part of him was happy because now that meant Chanyeol was single, but the other half hated seeing Chanyeol this way.

“I—I’m sorry…” Baekhyun managed.

“I was the one that ended it,” Chanyeol said, which surprised Baekhyun, “but… things just ended on a bad note. I can’t help but feel that I broke her heart.”

Now Baekhyun _really_ didn’t know what to say.

“Well… maybe she’s one broken heart closer to her happily ever after.” Baekhyun had heard that in some TV show but it had slipped from his mind which one.

Chanyeol gave a one shouldered shrug. “I hope she doesn’t condemn me to hell.”

Baekhyun held himself back from saying _Even if she did I’m sure you’d go to heaven because you’re already an angel._ Instead he said, “Don’t say that…”

Chanyeol sighed and shook his head. “I don’t know… I think I really screwed up this time.”

By the time Baekhyun had thought of something to say, Chanyeol was already pulling up to the driveway and cutting the engine off.

Baekhyun led the way as they walked inside and set his stuff on the couch. “Here, why don’t you, just take a seat, and I’ll be right back.” Baekhyun was grateful that Chanyeol didn’t protest and simply sat down at one of the couches and laid back in silence.

Baekhyun ran to the kitchen and opened the fridge in a hurry to get back to Chanyeol. He grabbed two green soju bottles in each hand from the fridge door and rushed back to Chanyeol.

“Here,” Baekhyun extended his hand towards Chanyeol and rather than object that he was allowing an underage teenager who was offering to have a drink with him, he just took the bottle and twisted the cap off, followed by a long drawn sip—in which Baekhyun admired the way Chanyeol’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed—not even bothering to wait for the shot glasses.

“How bad _was_ it?” Baekhyun dared to ask.

“ _Bad_ ,” Chanyeol replied with a sigh. “We’d been fighting for a while…” Well  _that_ explained some things.

Baekhyun twisted the cap of his bottle carefully, keeping his focus on Chanyeol. “Why did it… not work out?”

Chanyeol shrugged. “A lot of reasons… but… I started to realize, maybe she wasn’t for me… maybe, we weren’t quite _meant_ for each other.”

Baekhyun couldn’t believe he was actually talking to Chanyeol about his love life, because all the while a tiny part of his heart broke, as he began to increasingly feel that while Chanyeol might be single, he would never feel anything towards Baekhyun other than a simple friendship.

He stayed quiet and allowed Chanyeol to talk, he didn’t want to push him if he didn’t want to keep going, but he did. “At first I thought she was just mad because I was working too much, but—I-I don’t know things happened and…” he sighed and took another swig from his bottle, “I think I just grew out of love…”

It was quiet for a moment as Chanyeol finished his bottle and picked the other one up. Baekhyun looked down at his own bottle and realized his bottle was nearly empty. Thinking back to a few nights earlier, Baekhyun thought he should probably stop drinking but he was already feeling a little lighter, more at ease, and he couldn’t stop himself from twisting the cap open of his second bottle. Chanyeol took a sip from his second bottle and continued, “suddenly there was... _someone else_.” Chanyeol’s eyes went to his bottle and just stared at it as if pondering some philosophical thought.

A thought suddenly popped in Baekhyun’s head _Is he talking about me?_ His heart wanted to believe that that was true but he was still hesitant to test his theory.

Baekhyun hadn’t even noticed he’d moved closer to Chanyeol until he was close enough to just reach out and comfort him, and his hand was itching to, but he didn’t want to intrude on Chanyeol’s personal space.

For a while they just sat beside each other, finishing their bottles, letting the alcohol settle in…

From just two bottles Baekhyun already felt like his head was in the clouds. He belatedly thought he probably shouldn’t have finished two bottles on his own, but he felt too good to care.

He glanced over to Chanyeol, whose eyes were still on the green bottle, frozen in his position.

“Chanyeol,” he called, the alcohol already taking over control of his brain.

The other broke from his intense stare and turned to look at Baekhyun. “Hm?”

“Can I…?” Baekhyun was speaking before he was thinking at this point, he wasn’t even sure how two bottles of soju was giving this much courage.

“Yes?”

“Can I kiss you?”

Chanyeol didn’t move, didn’t reply, his expression stayed frozen.

Suddenly his brain started going into overload, his heart started racing, the reality of what he’d just said came crashing down and Baekhyun immediately regretted ever getting the four bottles from the fridge.

His body moved on its own accord, jumping up from the couch and running, scared like a little child, just thinking of everything that could possibly be going through Chanyeol’s mind.

He unconsciously heard a “ _Baekhyun, wait!_ ” Coming from behind him but he didn’t stop.

He was surprised he didn’t fall face forward from his first hurried step up the stairs, he kept his eyes down, making sure his feet touched the steps and he didn’t stumble.

When he was half way up the stairs he felt a strong hold around his wrist. For the sake of not tumbling down the stairs, he stopped.

“Baekhyun, please, wait,” came Chanyeol’s unwavering voice.

“I-I’m sorry, I, I, wasn’t sure, I’m sorry, please—”

What cut him off were soft, plush lips on his own, and a strong arm wrapped around his waist, pulling him slightly down. Baekhyun froze for a moment, dazed brain unsure of what was happening. Then there was a smile against his lips followed by a heart chuckle. “Well this is an interesting turn of events…”

Baekhyun couldn’t help but chuckle as well, still getting over the initial shock of having Chanyeol’s lips on his.

“Was… was it me?” Baekhyun asked meekly.

Chanyeol’s hand came up to cup his cheek. “Baekhyun, I’m not kidding when I tell you I can’t get you out of my head.”

Baekhyun was pretty sure he was turning the color of a tomato. He could’ve sworn he was dreaming—the same dream he’d had two nights in a row where Chanyeol professed his love to him, sometimes under a starry sky, sometimes on the shores of a sandy beach—because _this_ , this couldn’t be real.

“Kiss me again,” Baekhyun said, at least if it wasn’t real, he was still going to enjoy it.

Treating him as if he were made out of porcelain, Chanyeol cupped his cheeks and slowly pulled him closer until their lips met and they were kissing again. Baekhyun’s hands moved up to Chanyeol’s shoulders without him having to tiptoe since they were on different steps.

This time Baekhyun was more alert, moving his unexperienced lips against Chanyeol’s. His lips tasted like sweet soju, and _oh my God_ were they soft—but definitely more experienced than Baekhyun, he was having a hard time keeping up.

He felt a tingle down his spine when Chanyeol’s tongue swept over his bottom lip. It felt so real, _If this is a dream please don’t wake me up_ , he prayed. He cracked his lips open a bit and let Chanyeol’s tongue inside his mouth. Their kiss suddenly turned fiery and sloppy, with a lot more wetness than Baekhyun had expected. Baekhyun wrapped his arms around Chanyeol’s neck and played with the hair at his nape. His legs started to feel like butter but a strong arm around his waist held him upright.

After what felt like an eternity of kissing, they paused to catch their breaths, foreheads pressed together. Their alcohol-heavy breaths intermingled for a few moments before Chanyeol broke the silence

“Please…tell me…this isn’t a dream,” Chanyeol spoke between intakes of breath.

Baekhyun couldn’t help but chuckle. “If it is I don’t want to wake up,” he said.

“I don’t either,” Chanyeol said.

What happened after the kiss was a blur, at first they were on the stairs then then next thing he knew they were laying on his bed, talking, kissing, touching. Time felt frozen. Baekhyun was swimming in paradise. Chanyeol’s hands were on his hips, lips on his, their legs were tangled together.

“I never want to stop kissing you,” Chanyeol said against his lips.

“Then don’t,” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol smiled against Baekhyun’s lips and continued kissing him. His lips were so soft and gentle, moving against Baekhyun’s slowly and sensually. Baekhyun could easily get addicted to kissing Chanyeol.

They broke apart after a while and just cuddled on the bed in silence.

“Was that your first kiss?” Chanyeol asked after a few moments of silence.

Baekhyun felt his cheeks grow warm and nodded sheepishly. “Was it obvious?”

Chanyeol shook his head. “No, you’re a good kisser—or maybe I was just too entranced by how your lips felt.” Baekhyun heated up more.

They were interrupted by a light knock on the door, causing them both to freeze and start to panic.

“Who is it?” Baekhyun called. Good thing Chanyeol had remembered to lock the door.

“Kyungsoo,” the elder replied from the other side.

Baekhyun let out a sigh. “Thank god…” he detached himself from Chanyeol, feeling a chill pass through him at the loss of heat and walked to the door.

He cracked it open and stuck his head out. “Yes?”

Kyungsoo’s eyes lowered to his lips. “I take it things worked out…” was all he said.

Baekhyun but his lip and nodded.

“I’ll be quick, I have to leave, something happened at the restaurant that I have to take care of, your father is at a business dinner, you’ll have to feed yourself tonight, I didn’t have time to prepare food,” Kyungsoo said.

Baekhyun hummed his understanding and Kyungsoo rushed off after a quick bow.

He closed the door and returned to Chanyeol. “Soo had something to take care of and my parents are at dinner. Shall we go grab some food somewhere?”

Chanyeol shrugged. “Or I could cook something…?” he suggested.

Baekhyun’s eyes went wide. “Would you?”

The corner of Chanyeol’s mouth quirked up. “Of course.”

 

.           .           .

 

“You guys are starting to act like a couple,” Kyungsoo said commented as he laid Baekhyun’s uniform on his bed the next morning.

Baekhyun couldn’t help but smile.

“That says enough about how much he must’ve already liked you…” he went on. “He seems very caring.”

“Does that mean I have your approval?” Baekhyun teased.

Kyungsoo returned from the closet with Baekhyun’s shoes and raised an eyebrow at him. “I’m not sure yet… he has to prove himself to me.”

Baekhyun reached out and poked Kyungsoo in the stomach playfully. “Aw, look at you in protective dad mode.”

Kyungsoo chuckled. “Maybe a little…”

“I told my friends…” Baekhyun said, changing the subject. “They… they were okay with it.”

“I told you they would be,” Kyungsoo said, sitting beside Baekhyun and wrapping an arm around his shoulders. “They’re your friends, they love you.”

Baekhyun smiled to himself. He loved his friends too.

“Now what?” Baekhyun asked after a moment of silence.

“Now you learn what it’s like to love someone,” was Kyungsoo’s reply.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't think I've ever waited this long to write a kiss scene but whatever, it's here now!  
> hit me up on twitter or whatever you know the drill @superbaektrash


	14. Locked Me In The Closet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun regrets his decisions and just wants to crawl back in the closet

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow actually on a Sunday for once lmao

Baekhyun felt eyes on him the entire day, panic set in and he started hiding his face around the halls. Everyone knew. He knew they did. He heard whispers in the halls, behind him in the classroom, in the bathroom. They were talking about him.

After catching a single tidbit of conversation about him he was running down the hallway, locking himself in the bathroom so no one would see him cry. Tears came rolling down his cheeks without stopping and he couldn’t control his sobs.

_I shouldn’t have said anything I shouldn’t have said anything I shouldn’t have said anything_ rang in his head like a mantra. Now everyone knew and it wouldn’t be long before his father found out and undoubtedly kicked him out.

He was sitting on the dirty bathroom floor, knees up to his chest, face down when he heard the bathroom door swing open followed by three sets of footsteps rush inside.

“Baek?” Baekhyun looked up at the sound of his best friend’s voice.

“Baek we know you’re in here please come out,” Minseok went on.

“ _No_ ,” was all Baekhyun said.

Hushed whispers were exchanged and a pair of converse clad feet approached the stall he was hiding inside. “Baekhyun, please don’t shut us out, we’re your friends,” came Kai’s soothing voice.

“ _No_ ,” Baekhyun repeated even thought Kai hadn’t asked him anything to prompt the response.

“Baek, please, we’re here for you,” came Minseok’s pleasing voice.

“Baek, open the door.” It was Jongdae this time.

Baekhyun shook his head to himself and buried his face back in his arms.

“Baekhyun, you can’t stay locked in there forever,” Minseok said.

“Watch me,” Baekhyun retorted, his voice came out meek and broken.

They were all kneeling in front of his locked stall now, just listening to him cry as they waited for him to open the door.

“Go away,” he said once he realized they weren’t leaving.

“We’re not going anywhere,” Kai said, he sounded serious.

Baekhyun didn’t know how long they stayed in there, the three of them outside patiently waiting, Baekhyun inside crying until his eyes hurt.

They heard the bell go off and commotion began outside. The bathroom door creaked open and a single set of footsteps walked inside.

“Sehun,” he heard Kai whisper. Another pair of feet joined the three outside the door.

“How long has he been at it?” Sehun whispered although not very quietly.

There was a muffled reply undoubtedly whispered in Sehun’s ear.

The door to the bathroom opened again followed by laughter and pieces of conversation. The noise ceased once their eyes landed on the four boys crouched by the stall.

“Beat it,” Sehun growled, and the boys scrambled to get out.

Baekhyun would’ve been scared if Sehun had spoken to him like _that._

“Listen kid, anyone tease you or try to hurt you, I’ll beat their ass,” Sehun said.

That brought a shred of comfort to Baekhyun somehow, that someone would be willing to fight just to protect him.

“Baek, please come out,” Minseok pleaded, “you’ve cried enough.”

“Kid, if you don’t come out now I’m breaking this door,” Sehun said. He was always one to put things bluntly.

“ _Sehun_!” the three of them snapped together.

Sehun stood up straight. “Locking himself up is just going to make things worse,” he said to the others. “Baekhyun, you have ten seconds to come out or I’m breaking the door.”

Baekhyun knew Sehun wasn’t one to make promises he wasn’t keen on keeping. He wiped his face with his already-soaked sleeves and stood up slowly. The air in the room was tense, everyone waiting for him to come out.

He reached for the lock on the door and pulled it open slowly.

He kept his eyes on the floor as he opened the door and stepped out hesitantly.

The second he was through the door he felt several arms tackle him in a hug, the first being Kai’s strong tan arms.

“Don’t listen to them Baek,” Kai whispered to him. “Their opinions don’t matter.”

“We love you Baek,” Minseok said.

“You don’t need to be afraid,” Jongdae said, “you don’t have to do this alone.”

The three of them detached from Baekhyun and looked at Sehun, expecting him to say something.

Sehun sighed. “Yeah, we’re all here for you… and whatnot…”

Minseok detached an arm from Baekhyun and yanked Sehun by the wrist into another hug. Sehun groaned but awkwardly molded himself onto the hug.

The tears stopped coming and Baekhyun’s heart had stopped racing. “Thank you,” he whispered. “I love you guys, _so much_.”

“Aw Baek, we love you too,” Minseok said. They tightened their hug, almost causing Baekhyun to lose his breath.

They slowly began to detach.

“Let’s get you cleaned up, okay?” Minseok said, wrapping an arm around Baekhyun.

After drying his face and putting on some makeup to cover the redness, Minseok wrapped Baekhyun in another hug and whispered sweet nothings into his ear, just like when they were little kids and Minseok would comfort Baekhyun after he hurt himself or his parents had been mean to him. Resting his head on Minseok’s shoulder, he closed his eyes for a second and pretended they were still little kids and that this entire mess wasn’t happening.

“Thanks Min,” he whispered.

“Don’t start crying again, I just put on 100,000 Won makeup on your face,” Minseok said, but his tone was teasing.

They laughed together and joined the others.

“One question remains though, how does everybody know?” Sehun was saying.

“We’re the only ones Baekhyun told, so who was it?” Jongdae said, his eyes were on Sehun, and for a second Baekhyun thought an argument would break out between all of them.

“Someone probably overheard us,” Kai suggested.

“ _Who_?” Jongdae said. “Why would anyone spread that around?”

“Oh, I know who…” Minseok said bitterly.

As if on cue, the bathroom door swung open and a pair of long and slim legs stepped in with the grace of a cat.

“Oh my, did I intrude on a club meeting?” Luhan said, words dripping with sarcasm.

“ _Luhan_ ,” they all muttered.

He wiggled his fingers as he smirked.

Minseok had taken up a protective stance in front of Baekhyun, and he was secretly grateful for it.

“It was you wasn’t it?” Minseok snapped.

“Aren’t we feisty?” Luhan teased.

“ _Asshole_ ,” Sehun grunted. He took a step towards Luhan, hands already balled into fists, but Kai’s strong grip on his wrist held him back.

“He’s just provoking you,” Kai said to his boyfriend. Sehun was known to give people beatings where beatings were due, and Luhan had already experienced that first hand, evident from the cut on his eyebrow that Baekhyun assumed was from the fight with Sehun just two days earlier.

“Are you coming back for another beating Luhan?” Sehun threatened.

“Maybe another time,” Luhan replied bitterly.

Kai’s hand was white from how hard he was holding onto Sehun’s wrist, sure to leave a mark.

Sehun grit his teeth. “Fuck you Luhan.”

“I think I’ll pass… anyways, I’ll leave you guys to your little club meeting, I’m just glad I didn’t walk in on you guys all fucking.”

That seemed to be the final straw for Sehun, he yanked his wrist from Kai’s grip, violently jerking his boyfriend forward as he did, and marched to Luhan, delivering a massive punch before Luhan even had a second to defend himself. Luhan crumpled to the floor from the force of the blow and his hands flew to his face.

Kai desperately yelled out his boyfriend’s name and took a cautious step towards him but was hesitant in reaching his hand out to him.

His nose had started to bleed like crazy but Sehun didn’t give him any time to recover, gripping his shirt and pulling him up to deliver another punch, this time to his stomach, knocking Luhan’s breath away.

“Sehun stop! You’ll get kicked off the team,” Kai pleaded.

That didn’t stop Sehun from picking up Luhan again and throwing one last punch at his jaw before stepping over the beaten boy and marching out of the bathroom.

Luhan was grunting in pain on the floor of the bathroom and the four of them didn’t know what to do.

Jongdae was the one to break the silence. “Do we help him or…?”

“Let him rot here,” Minseok finished. He gripped Baekhyun’s hand and led them out of the bathroom, paying Luhan no heed as he stepped over him and walked out.

“I’m going to find Sehun,” Kai said, and sprinted down the hall.

“We’ll meet up later,” Jongdae said.

“You wanna go to lunch?” Minseok asked tentatively.

Baekhyun replied with a small shake of his head.

“You want me to call Chanyeol and tell him to pick you up?” Minseok suggested.

Baekhyun nodded, not being able to hide the small smile that grew on his lips at the mention of Chanyeol.

Minseok hummed. “What _that_ about?”

Baekhyun bit his lip. “What’s _what_ about?”

“The blush, the smile, the _sparkle in your eyes_ ,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun felt his cheeks heat up. “Uh…” he looked around to make sure there was no one nearby, “so, um, Chanyeol and I… kissed? We like each other…?”

There was a smile on both Jongdae’s and Minseok’s faces.

“What?” Baekhyun asked.

“Congrats,” Jongdae said.

“Yeah, it’s what you wanted right?” Minseok said.

Baekhyun nodded.

“Did you guys…?” Jongdae left the question hanging.

Baekhyun suddenly felt himself blush deeper. “What? _No_ , no. That’s… too much… for now.”

“Hit me up when you need some condoms,” Jongdae said.

“ _Ew_ , I’m not asking you for…” he lowered his voice, “ _condoms_.”

“Aw, is the little baby scandalized by the idea of _sex_?” Minseok asked, a teasing smile on his lips.

Baekhyun pouted. “N- _no_ … I-I just… don’t like talking, about it.”

Minseok and Jongdae both let out a chuckle.

“That’s cute,” Minseok said.

“ _Minseok_ , are you not a virgin?” Baekhyun asked hesitantly.

This time Minseok actually laughed out loud. “Of course not Baekhyun!”

Baekhyun was in a state of shock. “Wha—How? W-with who?”

“My first time? It was one of my brother’s friends. Nothing too magical I’m afraid…” Minseok said, “but I’ve had better times since then…”

“Oh…” suddenly Baekhyun felt like a little kid again, inexperienced and immature.

“But don’t feel pressured to have sex just because everyone around you is doing it too,” Jongdae said, quickly picking up on Baekhyun’s emotions. “It has to be with someone special.”

“Chanyeol…?” Minseok suggested.

Baekhyun’s cheeks were suddenly warm again, his mind immediately imagining him and Chanyeol… together… on a bed… He shook the thought from his head. “Maybe…” he said, although a small part of him was already sure of it.

“We’ll let you decide on your own…” Jongdae said.

“Right now let’s just get you home,” Minseok said.

Baekhyun nodded. That sounded like a great idea at the moment.

Minseok spoke to Chanyeol on the phone while Jongdae and Baekhyun ran to his class to get his things and once they returned to Minseok the elder announced that Chanyeol would be there shortly.

The walked slowly down the halls, talking about whatever came to mind, and for a second Baekhyun forgot about everything that was going on.

They pushed open the front doors and stepped out of the school building, not really paying attention to where they were going. Before Baekhyun had the chance to laugh at something Minseok was saying, he froze in his spot once his eyes landed on who was standing in the parking lot.

“Baek?—oh…” Minseok said, following Baekhyun’s line of sight. Before Minseok could even take a step in another direction, there was a girly voice calling out Baekhyun’s name.

Baekhyun cursed under his breath.

“ _Baekhyun oppa_ , can we talk?”

Baekhyun took a cautious step towards Joy but Joy’s own steps were quick and she was standing right in front of him in a matter of seconds.

“Wha-what do you want to talk about?” Baekhyun asked, even though he knew exactly what it was about.

“It’s not true is it? What Lu said?” Joy reached her hand out and placed it on Baekhyun’s shoulder. “You don’t like boys right?”

“I…—I—” Baekhyun didn’t have time to reply before Joy’s lips were suddenly on his.

His body was frozen in place, he couldn’t bring his limbs to move, and Joy wasn’t taking the hint and just kept kissing him.

Finally snapping out of his frozen state at the sound of a car door closing, Baekhyun shoved Joy away and wiped his lips with the sleeve of his uniform.

He was scared of turning around, knowing exactly who he would see.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliche right? But it's ok, deep down we're all suckers for a good cliche
> 
> Also I love Luhan please don't come at me


	15. Where Ends Meet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Something seems off about Baekbom's case to Chanyeol and Baekhyun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One day late but I had to finish another chapter before I was confident enough to post this one <3  
> I'm almost done with the entire thing, it'll end up being around 20 chapters

Baekhyun brushed past Chanyeol without looking at him, feeling his cheeks hot with guilt and embarrassment. Of course he _shouldn’t_ feel that way, Joy had kissed him impromptu, and he had pushed her away, but he couldn’t help but feel like he’d betrayed Chanyeol.

He got inside the car wordlessly, Minseok and Jongdae frozen in their spots without knowing what to do.

When Baekhyun looked back at Joy from inside the car, for the first time in his life he saw her mad. Mad that for the first time in her life she didn’t get what she wanted. _What a spoiled brat_ , Baekhyun thought.

Chanyeol didn’t say anything during the ride home, but Baekhyun could tell he was on edge by the way he gripped the steering wheel.

Chanyeol opened the door for him when they got home while Baekhyun continued to avoid his eyes.

He tossed his bag on the floor of the living room, suddenly remembering that his parents were on their annual one-week trip to China and he was free to dig through his fathers’ office.

Baekhyun belatedly noticed that Chanyeol had followed him.

He already knew the door would be locked, but he also knew that he’d long ago hid a bobby pin inside the drawer of the table by the door.

Chanyeol was quiet, standing a few feet behind him.

Baekhyun unlocked the office with practiced ease and walked inside, leaving the door open for Chanyeol.

His father was an idiot for leaving behind the folder sitting beautiful on his desk. Did he not know how good of a spy Baekhyun was? _Clearly not_.

Putting the bobby pin in his pocket, he walked to the desk and picked up the folder again. Since the night Baekhyun had walked in on his father raging and drinking, the office was spotless, the papers had been picked up, the glass swept, and the furniture rearranged to their original positions.

The folder seemed thicker than last time, and once he opened it, he knew why. There were more papers, some plastic baggies with what could only be evidence, and tons of post-its with scribbly annotations.

The pictures he saw made his stomach churn. His brother’s face was bloodied from the bullet wound. It was right in the center of his forehead, right on top of his nose. His death was no accident, Baekhyun realized. Someone had walked into the bar his brother had been at and deliberately shot him with the absolute intention to kill him.

“Something wrong?” Chanyeol spoke for the first time that afternoon.

“Someone killed him—they, they meant to kill him. It wasn’t an accident,” Baekhyun said, lip trembling.

Chanyeol stepped closer to him and took the folder from his hand. He scanned through the pages. He tossed them back down and without an ounce of hesitation he wrapped his arms around Baekhyun, as if he was expecting the downpour of tears that would soon follow.

His cries were muffled by Chanyeol’s clothes. “They killed him.” His chest shook with sobs. He felt the same as he had on the day of his brother’s death, overcome by sadness, anger, despair.

“Shh… shhh… it’s okay,” Chanyeol whispered to him while he rubbed soothing circles onto his back. “Baek, just breathe.” He cupped Baekhyun’s cheeks in his hands and focused his eyes on him. “Hey, hey, look at me.”

Baekhyun’s eyes finally met Chanyeol’s.

“Baek, calm down, Baekbom wouldn’t want to see you this way.”

“He was murdered!” Baekhyun cried. “And for what?”

“I’m going to find out, and I’m going to track down the person that did it and I will make sure they go behind bars—and that they stay there,” Chanyeol promised.

Baekhyun’s tears kept pouring but he nodded his head.

“Do you believe in me?”

Baekhyun nodded again.

“Okay, now stop this crying and let’s go do something fun, okay?” Chanyeol wiped his last few tears and interlocked their hands, steering Baekhyun away from the office.

Baekhyun mindlessly followed Chanyeol up the stairs and into his room and onto the bed.

Back in his room, Baekhyun’s thoughts began to reorganize themselves and he suddenly remembered what had happened earlier.

“Ch-Chanyeol, I—about earlier… tha-that wasn’t meant to happen, w-with Joy—she, she…—”

“Baekhyun, it’s okay, it wasn’t your fault, I understand,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun looked down at his hands. “I… I’m still sorry. Joy… Joy—”

“She’s the girl that’s not exactly your type?”

Baekhyun gave a nod of his head.

There was a moment of silence between them.

“Do your parents know? A-about you, liking… boys?” Baekhyun asked hesitantly.

“Yeah…” Chanyeol said. “They walked in on me one day…” He chuckled at the memory. “They were… mad, for a while—but then they were accepting. It just took time…”

Baekhyun was quiet.

Chanyeol put a warm hand on his shoulder. “Hey, listen, you can’t change who you are. They’ll just have to accept you, but it might take some time.”

“I—I’m scared…” Baekhyun whispered. Chanyeol immediately wrapped him in a hug once again. It seemed he had cracked Baekhyun’s code—he loved hugs.

“I’ll be here with you—and you don’t have to do it right now, only when you’re ready.”

 

.           .           .

 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun cooked a meal together—after eating almost half if it while they cooked—then sat down in front of the TV to eat. Once the plates had been set aside, Baekhyun cuddled against Chanyeol and they finished the movie they’d been watching. Baekhyun fell asleep while Chanyeol ran his hands through his hair and woke up to kisses on the side of his face, back in his room. Chanyeol was sitting on the edge of the bed leaning over Baekhyun while he showered him with kisses.  

“What time is it?” Baekhyun groaned.

“A little past 8,” Chanyeol replied, “I prepared a bath for you,” he said with another kiss.

“Mmm…” he hummed.

“Go while it’s hot,” Chanyeol whispered.

Baekhyun stretched his arms and heard his back pop. “You’re so sweet,” he murmured, arms wrapped around Chanyeol’s neck.

Chanyeol smiled. “Anything for you…”

Baekhyun sat up on the bed and planted a kiss on Chanyeol’s cheeks then one on his lips. “Thank you.”

Chanyeol returned the kiss and wrapped his arms around Baekhyun’s waist, slowly lifting him up and carrying him to the bathroom.

“Do you want me to go?” Chanyeol asked, setting Baekhyun down in front of the tub.

Baekhyun shook his head. Chanyeol smiled at his shyness.

“Just… um, can you…?”

“Turn around?” Chanyeol guessed.

“Yeah…”

Without question, Chanyeol turned around and waited for Baekhyun to take off his clothes and dip into the bathtub.

“Okay you can turn around now,” Baekhyun said sheepishly once he’d gotten in the tub and covered himself with bubbles.

Chanyeol did so slowly and took a seat at the edge of the tub.

“Feels amazing,” Baekhyun mumbled, closing his eyes, and the next thing he knew he was falling right back asleep.

He was gently shaken awake sometime later by Chanyeol, who had stayed by his side to keep him from drowning.

Baekhyun let out a yawn. “How long was I out?”

“Just an hour,” Chanyeol said, “I put some essential oils in the water and I think it helped you fall asleep.”

“Whatever you put in it, it felt amazing— _I_ feel amazing…”

Chanyeol smiled. “Good, I’m glad.”

“Will you hand me my towel—it’s over there,” Baekhyun said pointing to the opposite wall.

Chanyeol nodded and went to get it. He opened the towel and motioned for Baekhyun to get out. “I’ll close my eye.”

Baekhyun nodded hesitantly and lifted himself up once he saw Chanyeol’s eyes close. Chanyeol’s arms wrapped around him when he felt Baekhyun against the towel. Once the towel was wrapped tightly around Baekhyun, Chanyeol hoisted him up and carried him to the bathroom, keeping his eyes away from Baekhyun’s nearly-naked form in his arms.

He set Baekhyun down gently and placed a kiss on his forehead. “Rest up, love.”

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun had fallen asleep with Chanyeol beside him, cuddled against his strong chest, hands interlaced with Chanyeol’s but when he woke up in the middle of the night the bed was cold and empty.

“Chanyeol?” he called out. No response. “Chanyeol,” he called out again, beginning to panic.

He tossed the covers aside and swung his legs over the bed.

He ran around his house calling out to Chanyeol but getting no response.

A million thoughts began running around his head. _Did he leave me? Did he go back to his girlfriend? Did something happen to him?_

He rushed back to his room and picked up his phone. There were no messages from Chanyeol, no note anywhere in his room.

He hesitated for a second before clicking on Chanyeol’s contact and dialing his number. Baekhyun let out a sigh when Chanyeol picked up after just the second ring.

“Baek, love, why are you awake?” were Chanyeol’s first words.

“Where are you?” Baekhyun asked instead of replying.

“I had to run home to get something, I’m on my way back right now, don’t worry love,” Chanyeol replied caringly.

“Oh…”

“I didn’t leave you Baek,” Chanyeol said, knowing exactly what Baekhyun was thinking, “Wait for me in your room, I’ll be there in five minutes, I promise.”

“Okay… hurry—I mean, _don’t_ —drive safe okay?”

“I will Baekhyun,” Chanyeol chuckled, “See you in a few.”

“Okay.”

Baekhyun couldn’t help himself and waited for Chanyeol in the living room so he could see him as soon as he arrived. He sat down on a couch where he could see the door and didn’t move until he heard the key being inserted into the lock.

“Baek… I told you to wait for me in your room,” Chanyeol reprimanded.  

Baekhyun noticed that Chanyeol was carrying something underneath his arm, which sparked his curiosity as always.

“What did you need to get?” Baekhyun inquired.

Chanyeol sighed. “I didn’t want you getting involved…”

“It’s about Baekbom isn’t it?”

Chanyeol nodded. “I went back to look at his file when you fell asleep and I started to see some similarities…”

Baekhyun was intrigued. “With what?”

“My sister,” Chanyeol said, taking the thick file that had been under his arms in his hands. “I don’t know why but I’ve kept this even after all these years—my parents think I burned it but there was something inside me that told me not to.”

He took a seat beside Baekhyun on the couch and opened the file for him to see. “I always thought she’d been caught in the crossfire of a gang fight but when I saw your brother’s file it made me think about my sister’s. She was killed from a bullet directly on her forehead—the shot was too perfect to just be an accident.” There were no pictures that Baekhyun could see, which Baekhyun was secretly grateful for, what he imagined was enough.

“The suspects for both cases are almost the same but for both cases there wasn’t enough evidence to convict anyone,” Chanyeol went on, “these murders had to have been perfectly orchestrated for the police to have come up blank.”

“Or they were paid not to,” Baekhyun suggested.

“ _Right_ —I thought that too, which made me think someone powerful had to have ordered these deaths,” Chanyeol paused before going on. “The only people I could think of that would have that kind of power are the Seoul Serpents.”

“Who are they?” Baekhyun asked.

“They are the most notorious gang in all of Seoul, they dominate the drug cartel in all of Korea and the majority of organized crime taking place in the city.”

Baekhyun felt a shiver go through him. “What would they want with Baekbom and your sister?”

“That’s the part I can’t figure out…” Chanyeol muttered.

“I wonder if my father knows about all of this…”

“I’m sure he does—mine too, most likely—but… I don’t know… all of this is really strange. Gangs like these don’t just attack for nothing, it’s not worth the hassle.”

“You’re right,” Baekhyun agreed.

“I could understand if your brother struck a deal with the gang and didn’t pull through with it—”

“Baekbom would never do that,” Baekhyun interjected.

“I know, I know, I’m just coming up with scenarios—but what wouldn’t make sense is how a 10-year-old got dragged into this mess…”

“This has to be our parents’ mess—it’s the only logical solution,” Baekhyun said. He refused to believe that his brother had anything to do with the most notorious gang in Seoul.

“That’s what I think too Baek,” Chanyeol said, “calm down.”

“So what do we do now?” Baekhyun asked.

“I’m going to talk to one of my friends in the police force and see what they have to say about this— _we_ aren’t doing anything. Don’t even bring it up to your father,” Chanyeol replied.

Baekhyun let out a yawn. “Okay, okay…”

“We’ll talk more tomorrow, let’s go to bed,” Chanyeol said, and held out a hand for Baekhyun.

Baekhyun interlaced his fingers with Chanyeol’s and they walked back to his room together, crashing on the bed as soon as they laid down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want you guys' opinions, would you guys prefer an epilogue or not?  
> Please [vote here](https://twitter.com/superbaektrash/status/1153375739938562048?s=20) or in the comments  
> Your thoughts and opinions are much appreciated!


	16. Confrontation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Time to face the consequences

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY THAT THIS IS SUPER LATE I TOTALLY FORGOT TO UPDATE

Baekhyun woke up to lots of kisses all over his face and tickles on his belly.

“Good morning love,” Chanyeol said when he blinked his eyes open.

Baekhyun smiled shyly. “Good morning.”

“I made you breakfast,” Chanyeol said.

“You’re _too_ sweet,” Baekhyun teased.

Chanyeol smiled and moved to pick up a tray with food on it and carefully place it on Baekhyun’s lap.

“Breakfast in _bed_?” Baekhyun said in surprise.

“It’ll be quicker than you having to go all the way downstairs then back,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun leaned over and gave Chanyeol a peck on the lips. “You’re amazing. Thank you.”

Baekhyun picked up his utensils and began eating while Chanyeol fetched his clothes for him.

“Does it matter which uniform I get?” Chanyeol called from inside the closet.

“No,” Baekhyun answered around a mouthful of food. Chanyeol would have been an amazing chef if he’d stayed in culinary school.

“What about the tie?” Chanyeol asked.

“Just pick any one,” Baekhyun replied.

Chanyeol returned to the bed with one of his uniforms and a cute tie to accompany it. He held it up for Baekhyun to see. “This good?”

“Perfect,” Baekhyun said, setting the breakfast tray aside. “Give me ten minutes and I’ll be ready.”

Chanyeol nodded and began making Baekhyun’s bed while he locked himself in his bathroom.

 

.           .           .

 

Baekhyun was quiet on the ride to school, fidgeting with the hem of his blazer. Chanyeol glanced at him every other minute worriedly although he knew what was putting Baekhyun on edge.

They arrived earlier than usual so Chanyeol found a parking spot in the front and they waited inside the car.  
“Baek, it’s going to be fine, no one is going to do anything to you,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun kept his eyes on his hands. “They’re going to make fun of me,” he mumbled.

“If they do I’ll come here myself and beat their asses,” Chanyeol said, hoping to make Baekhyun feel better.

“You’ll get arrested,” Baekhyun said, mood unchanged.   

Chanyeol sighed. “Baek, you can’t worry about what everyone thinks of you. You have to live your life for yourself.”

“But my dad…”

“He’ll accept you Baek, he loves you,” Chanyeol assured him, but it didn’t dull the fear that he might get kicked out of his own house. “Hey, look to me,” he cupped Baekhyun’s cheek and made him look into his eyes, “I love you.”

Baekhyun felt himself go red. “I-I love you too, Chanyeol,” he said, and he meant it, with every fiber in his body without a doubt.

They hadn’t spoken the three big words yet, Baekhyun had always thought he would be the first one but Chanyeol was constantly surprising him.

Chanyeol smiled. “Everything is going to be okay, just trust me. And if you don’t feel ready just call me and I’ll pick you up, got it?”

Baekhyun replied with a nod.

Chanyeol leaned forward and planted a quick kiss on his lips. “How about you get going?”

Baekhyun didn’t want to go, he wanted to spend the day with Chanyeol again and not have to deal with the undoubted chaos that would be school, but he nodded anyways.

“Come with me?” Baekhyun asked.

“Are you sure?”

Baekhyun nodded. He knew what going out there with Chanyeol would lead to, what people would think, but it was already out anyways, what was the use of hiding?

“Alright, whatever you want,” Chanyeol said. He got Baekhyun’s bag for him and they walked towards the school together, Chanyeol leaving a bit of space between them, appropriate for a bodyguard and his client, but Baekhyun was quick to link their hands and get closer to Chanyeol. “You’re not just my bodyguard anymore,” Baekhyun whispered.

Chanyeol smiled briefly. “Don’t forget your father still has the power to fire me.”

Baekhyun gave a one-shouldered shrug. “I’ll just hire you back myself.”

Chanyeol chuckled. “You’re such a little rebel.”

Baekhyun smiled and snuggled against Chanyeol even more, but as they neared the school fear started taking over his body and he distanced himself a bit, leaving space between them though they still held hands.

The school bell was close to ringing but there were still lots of students milling around the front entrance, chatting with friends, finishing last minute homework, doing something on their phones. Minseok, Jongdae, and the two baseball captains among the crowd of students—likely waiting for Baekhyun.

Chanyeol stopped a few feet before the front steps and Baekhyun turned his back to the school to face Chanyeol. “Have a good day, Baek,” he said.

The crowd got noticeably quieter.

Baekhyun gulped. “Bye Yeol,” he said, testing the nickname to see Chanyeol’s reaction.

Chanyeol smiled in reply. “I’ll see you later.”

Baekhyun glanced behind him. There were lots of eyes on him, he knew that already. He felt like doing something crazy, so on impulse he reached up on his tiptoes and touched his lips to Chanyeol’s, Chanyeol meeting him halfway so he could reach. Baekhyun’s hands wrapped around Chanyeol’s neck, pulling him closer, and he soon felt Chanyeol’s arms on his waist.

Now everyone had really gone silent, and Baekhyun secretly enjoyed all of the attention he was getting.

When they detached, Baekhyun knew he was blushing, but he tried to pretend like nothing had happened. “I’ll see you later.”

Chanyeol was left in his spot a bit stunned while Baekhyun rushed to meet his friends.

“That was…” Minseok started.

“Hot,” Sehun finished, earning him a playful smack from Baekhyun.

“I was going to say cute, but okay,” Minseok said.

“You go Baekhyun,” Jongdae said.

“I’m happy for you,” Kai said.

Baekhyun smiled. “Thanks guys. I feel much better now.”

“That’s all that matters,” Minseok said, hooking an arm around Baekhyun’s shoulder.

“If anyone gives you shit for it, they’ll have to deal with me,” Sehun said.

Baekhyun bit his lip. “Thank you Sehun.”

“As long as he doesn’t get his ass kicked off the team,” Kai said, nudging his boyfriend with his elbow.

“Relax babe, the principal and my mom are tight, I’ll be fine,” Sehun said.

Kai just rolled his eyes.

Baekhyun turned back to Chanyeol one more time, waving one last goodbye before heading inside the building, just as the bell rang.

“You know people are gonna talk now right?” Minseok whispered to him. “Are you okay with that?”

Baekhyun nodded. “I can’t live in the closet forever. So what if people talk?”

“I like this new attitude of yours, Baek,” Jongdae said, “but on a different note, I see things are going well with Chanyeol…”

Baekhyun blushed. “Yeah…”

“He looks like he really cares about you,” Kai said.

“I think he does,” Baekhyun said.

“ _I think_ ,” Minseok mocked, “you _know_ he does.”

Baekhyun smiled, just thinking about Chanyeol.

 

.           .           .

 

Throughout the day Baekhyun felt surprisingly at ease. A few new people had come up and talked to him, congratulating him for coming out or even asking for help. He ignored the occasional odd stares and rude comments and tried to only pay attention to the compliments and whispered praise.

There was no sign of Luhan anywhere—or Joy for that matter—and Baekhyun was silently grateful.

The only thing that upset him was that Chanyeol had stopped answering his texts. They’d exchanged a few cute texts in the morning and then there was nothing after lunch. Baekhyun started getting worried but Minseok assured him Chanyeol must’ve just been busy or away from his phone.

Baekhyun ran as fast as he could out of his classroom to the front doors, knowing Chanyeol would be there waiting for him. He spotted his father’s sleek black car easily, but he stopped in his tracks when the driver stepped out.

It wasn’t Chanyeol.

“Kim Baekhyun, this way please,” the man said.

Baekhyun was silent as he walked to the car and climbed into the back.

“Where’s Chanyeol?” was all Baekhyun said once they were both in the car.

“Mr. Park is longer in service,” the man replied, “I am Tao, I will be your bodyguard from now on.”

That explained why Chanyeol wouldn’t reply.

“I want Chanyeol,” Baekhyun demanded.

“I’m sorry Mr. Kim,” Tao said.

Baekhyun huffed. “Give me your phone.”

“I can’t do that Mr. Kim, I’m sorry,” Tao said.

“ _Give me your phone_ ,” Baekhyun repeated. “Please.”

Tao sighed and handed Baekhyun his phone, already unlocked. Baekhyun typed Chanyeol’s phone number from memory and waited for him to answer.

“What is it Tao?” came Chanyeol’s deep husky voice.

Baekhyun was silent.

“Tao? I’m hanging up,” Chanyeol said.

“Wait,” Baekhyun whispered.

There was a gasp on the other end.

“Where are you?” Baekhyun asked.

“I—I… we can’t be together anymore Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said after a moment.

“It’s my father isn’t it? Chanyeol, please, I’ll do anything,” Baekhyun pleaded.

“It’s between you and him,” Chanyeol said. “I—I have to go…”

“What did he do?” Baekhyun asked.

“He… fired me… told me I wasn’t allowed near you anymore…” Chanyeol trailed off.

“Did he threaten you?” Baekhyun demanded.

“No—not exactly… it’ll just be better if you talk to your parents,” Chanyeol said.

“We’re not over yet Chanyeol,” Baekhyun said.

Chanyeol stayed quiet.

“I’ll call you later okay?”

Chanyeol didn’t reply but Baekhyun knew he’d heard him. He hung up the phone and gave it back to Tao.

“ _Step on it_ ,” Baekhyun ordered.

Tao replied with a quick nod and sped up the car, arriving at the house a few minutes earlier than usual.

His parents were already waiting for him as soon as he opened the front door.

“I want Chanyeol back,” Baekhyun declared angrily before his father could even open his mouth.

“You are in no place to make demands,” his father growled, “I can’t believe my own son is a…”

“Honey, please,” his mother interjected.

“ _No_. This is disgusting. _You_ are disgusting,” his father sneered, looking Baekhyun right in the eye. “You are never seeing Chanyeol _again_. Go to your room and be quiet until I figure out what to do with you,” he ordered.

“ _No_. You can’t tell me what to do, it’s _my life_ ,” Baekhyun snapped, surprised by his own boldness.

“As long as you live under my roof, you follow my rules, and if you so much as dare disobey me, you _will suffer the consequences_.” Baekhyun unconsciously took a step back.

“I don’t care… I love him,” he said after a pause.

“ _He_ is a _man_. You will love and marry a _woman_ , I will not accept anything but,” his father said.

“You can’t tell me who to love and who to marry—that is _my_ choice,” Baekhyun snapped back.

His father took a step towards him but his mother held him back from going any further. “Dear, don’t.”

“You have two options, _do as I say_ or _leave_ ,” his father grunted, “and never come back.”

“ _Junmyeon_!” his mother gasped.

“I’ll leave!” Baekhyun snapped. Before he realized what he was doing, he brushed past Tao, somehow taking the car keys from him and drove away as his parents and new bodyguard yelled for him to come back.

Tears started streaming down his face, blurring his vision, but he just continued to speed up. He willed himself to just focus on Chanyeol and nothing else. Never mind that he didn’t have his license yet and rarely even drove.

He eventually found a gas station to stop at and situate himself. For a while, he just sat inside the car and cried.

He was getting tired of crying.

He slapped himself a few times and wiped his tears. “Crying isn’t going to solve anything Baekhyun,” he said to himself. His thought began to clear and he reached into his pockets for his phone.

Chanyeol thankfully picked up in just two rings.

“Yeol,” Baekhyun whispered.

“Oh my God, Baek, how bad was it?” Chanyeol said, voice coated with worry.

“Where do you live Yeol?” Baekhyun asked, holding back a sob.

“Where are you? I’ll go get you,” Chanyeol said.

“No, just tell me where you live, I’ll go to you,” Baekhyun said.

“O-okay, I’ll text it to you… just, be safe okay Baek?” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun nodded, then he realized Chanyeol couldn’t see him. “I will. Bye.”

“Bye.”

When Baekhyun pulled his phone away from his ear, it buzzed with a message from Chanyeol with a street name.

He put it into his phone GPS and found that he was less than 10 minutes away.

Baekhyun drove more cautiously, below the speed limit, now that his head was more or less in the right place, and soon enough he was standing in front of Chanyeol’s apartment door, knocking anxiously.


	17. With You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun gets it on with Chanyeol

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter everyone--or maybe just me--has been waiting for!   
> Sorry it's a little late, in my mind I had already posted it but I guess not hehehe  
> Please enjoy <3
> 
>  
> 
> If you do not like smut scenes you can just skip to the bottom of this chapter to the last the dots and read just a cute ramen scene <3

 Chanyeol opened after a single knock and Baekhyun was throwing his arms around him, crashing their lips together.

“Make love to me Chanyeol,” Baekhyun whispered, “make me forget about everything.”

“Baek, you’re not in your right mind right now, are you sure you want this?” Chanyeol asked hesitantly.

“Just do it Chanyeol!” Baekhyun pleaded. “I want it.”

Chanyeol pulled back for a moment and scanned Baekhyun’s face before diving back in and engulfing Baekhyun’s lips with his own.

Baekhyun unabashedly opened his mouth and let Chanyeol’s tongue inside, tasting traces of soju on his tongue.

Chanyeol ran his hands down Baekhyun’s sides, stopping at his thighs and easily pulling him up without breaking their kiss, Baekhyun immediately wrapping his legs around Chanyeol’s waist.

Baekhyun tangled his hands in Chanyeol’s hair, messing it up more than it already was while Chanyeol walked down the hall and into his bedroom.

He laid Baekhyun gently down on the bed and climbed on top of him, breaking their kiss to rip his shirt off.

“Have you ever done this?” Chanyeol whispered.

Baekhyun shook his head shyly.

“We’ll go slow,” Chanyeol promised, and Baekhyun couldn’t help but blush as he admired Chanyeol’s amazing body. “You can touch,” he said once he noticed Baekhyun staring.

“Can I?” Baekhyun asked.

In reply Chanyeol took his hands and placed them on his chest. “ _Please_ ,” he said.

They stayed that way for a moment, with Baekhyun just running his hands all over Chanyeol’s chest, feeling the hard muscle underneath his chest.

“You can take mine off too,” Baekhyun said. He raised his arms for Chanyeol to carefully pull of his shirt.

“You’re so cute,” Chanyeol said, laying a gentle hand on his bare chest.

Baekhyun felt his cheeks heat up.

“If you don’t like something, just tell me,” Chanyeol said as he leaned down and planted a kiss right below Baekhyun’s neck. He looked up to make sure it was okay, to which Baekhyun replied with a nod.

He was careful not to leave marks, but Baekhyun liked the idea of being left with proof of their time together. Even better if his father saw them.

“Chanyeol… you can… leave marks,” he said between hushed gasps.

“Are you sure?” Chanyeol asked.

“I want them to know that I’m yours,” Baekhyun assured him.

Chanyeol gave a single nod before his lips were on Baekhyun’s neck again and he was sucking a hickey.

Baekhyun wrapped his arms around Chanyeol, running his hands through his hair.

Once Chanyeol finished he soothed the reddening spot with kisses and licks.

“Chanyeol, I’m ready,” Baekhyun said, “please,” he added.

“Let me prep you, okay baby?” Chanyeol planted a kiss on each of his cheeks, red hot from the nickname. Baekhyun’s eyes followed him as he got up from the bed and walked to the nightstand, rummaging through the first drawer.

He returned to the bed with a foil packet, a small clear plastic bottle, and a pink dildo.

“Do you…?” Baekhyun left the question hanging.

Chanyeol shrugged. “Occasionally. We can switch one day if you want.” And Baekhyun would be lying if he said he already didn’t like the idea of another time.

Before situating himself between Baekhyun’s legs, Chanyeol tore off his sweatpants and boxers in one go without hesitation—but of course, what did he have to be ashamed of with a dick like _that_?

He placed his hands on Baekhyun’s hips. “Can I?” he asked, and after a nod from Baekhyun, he pulled Baekhyun’s pants down, slowly and carefully.

When his pants had been carelessly tossed somewhere on the floor, Baekhyun instinctively covered his face with his hands. No one had ever seen him naked like this—laid on a bed, flushing like crazy, dick hard and leaking against his stomach. 

“Hey, hey, no need to be shy,” Chanyeol said, peeling his hands from his face. “God, you’re so adorable.”

Baekhyun giggled at the compliment.

“Have you ever fingered yourself before?” Chanyeol asked—just a normal, logistical question.

Baekhyun bit his lips and nodded tentatively. “A few times…”

“Do you want to do it or do you want me to?” Baekhyun loved how caring he was being about the whole ordeal.

“You can do it,” Baekhyun mumbled and received a smile from Chanyeol in response.

“Okay, spread your legs a little for me,” Chanyeol said as he situated himself between Baekhyun legs.

He started with feather light kisses on the inside of his thigh, then he moved on to open mouthed kisses, sucking at a few spots and leaving behind a few marks.

“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said, looking him in the eye.

“Yes?” Baekhyun replied.

“Can I eat you out?” Chanyeol asked, making Baekhyun almost turn into a tomato. “I’ll only do it if you want me to,” he added before Baekhyun could reply.

“I—uh… but I haven’t…” Baekhyun started.

“I don’t mind, Baek,” Chanyeol assured him.

Not trusting himself to speak Baekhyun just nodded.

“Just relax, okay?” Chanyeol cooed.

Baekhyun willed himself to relax and take a deep breath.

At the first touch of Chanyeol’s tongue, Baekhyun let out a lewd moan.

Chanyeol circled his rim, slowly at first, but as Baekhyun’s moans got more desperate, he started sucking, and even getting brave enough to prod at his hole with the tip of his tongue.  

“ _Oh my God, Chanyeol_ ,” Baekhyun whined.

That gave Chanyeol incentive to continue, making Baekhyun twitch in pleasure. Chanyeol kept Baekhyun’s legs held open while he ate him out.

Baekhyun’s fingers didn’t even come close to what Chanyeol was doing with his tongue, not to mention the obscene noises he was making.

When Chanyeol pulled away, there was a string of saliva connecting his lip to Baekhyun’s wet hole.

“Ready for more?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun nodded eagerly.

Chanyeol licked his lips in lust and picked up the small bottle of lube. Baekhyun’s eyes followed his fingers as he coated them in the clear liquid and lowered them until Baekhyun could no longer see.

“Sorry if it’s a little cold,” was Chanyeol’s only warning before Baekhyun felt the pads of his fingers circle his rim.

Chanyeol’s first finger slipped inside him easily, after the work he’d done with his tongue.

Baekhyun let out a long drawn out moan until Chanyeol’s knuckles his entrance. “ _Oh my God, Chanyeol_ ,” Baekhyun repeated.

Chanyeol moved his fingers slowly while Baekhyun got used to the stretch then pushed in another one when he felt ready.

“Feeling okay?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun nodded. “You can keep going…” he mumbled.

Chanyeol smiled and gave a nod. He pulled his fingers out and thrust them back in, harder this time. Chanyeol’s fingers felt so much better than Baekhyun’s own, they were thicker, longer, and at a much better angle—he’d never grown the courage to buy a dildo so the most he’d ever had were his fingers.

“ _More_ ,” Baekhyun moaned.

Chanyeol curled his fingers inside his hole, creating pleasure Baekhyun had never dreamt of. He probably sounded like such a horny virgin, his face heated up just thinking about it.

With his other hand, Chanyeol took Baekhyun’s dick and started leisurely stroking it.

Chanyeol scissored Baekhyun open, allowing for one more finger to slide in.

“ _Fas—ter—Chan—yeol_ ,” Baekhyun moaned, voice breaking every time Chanyeol thrust his fingers back in.

Chanyeol didn’t wait to reply and just increased his pace, making Baekhyun moan and squirm like a bitch in heat.

Chanyeol must’ve changed his angle because at the next thrust Baekhyun felt him hit a different spot that made him yell out in pleasure.

“ _There_ it is…” Chanyeol muttered.

He continued fingering him, always hitting that one spot.

“Agh— _ah_ —Chanyeol—” Baekhyun didn’t know what to say, it all just felt so good he never wanted it to stop.

Baekhyun started feeling his orgasm approaching, and with the stimulation in his hole and on his dick, it was not surprising how close he was.

When Chanyeol’s hand left his dick he almost whined at the loss, but then he felt something harder and colder touch his entrance that was not another finger, and then he remembered that Chanyeol had also brought a dildo to the bed.

“Can I?” he asked, and Baekhyun could only nod.

His hole suddenly felt empty after Chanyeol took his fingers out but they were slowly replaced with something slightly bigger and harder.

“You feeling okay?” Chanyeol asked, returning a hand to Baekhyun’s dick. Baekhyun nodded in reply.

 “Let me—” he moaned as the rest of the dildo was pushed in, “kiss you—” he finished.

Hand leaving Baekhyun’s dick, Chanyeol reached above Baekhyun’s head and grabbed a pillow, placing it underneath Baekhyun’s head, then he lowered his lips to Baekhyun’s ever so gently while still thrusting the dildo into his hole, perfectly angling it so that he’d hit his prostate with every thrust of the dildo.

Baekhyun’s arms immediately wrapped around Chanyeol’s and pulled him down further, smashing their lips together.

“More, _more_ ,” Baekhyun moaned against his lips.

Chanyeol didn’t hesitate before starting to pound the dildo into Baekhyun, even smiled against his lips when he started to moan and mewl uncontrollably, spreading his legs wider.

Baekhyun dug his nails into Chanyeol’s back, sure to leave marks.

“Chan— _yeol_ —aghh— _please_ , I’m gonna…” Baekhyun wasn’t able to finish as he came all over his stomach and Chanyeol’s hand.

Chanyeol stopped his movements to allow for Baekhyun to come down from his high.

Baekhyun took deep breaths, blushing all over.

“I…” he started, “I… came, so fast…” he said, trying to avoid Chanyeol’s gaze.

“Baby, it’s okay,” Chanyeol cooed, “there’s nothing wrong with that.” He slowly pulled out the dildo out of Baekhyun’s oversensitive hole and set it aside, laying beside Baekhyun and cleaning up the cum with a washcloth Baekhyun hadn’t seen him grab.

“Chanyeol, I still want… _you_ ,” Baekhyun said, placing his hand over Chanyeol’s.

“Baby, are you sure? We can wait for another time, I’m not in a hurry,” Chanyeol said, “I want to take my time with you.”

Baekhyun blushed at that. “We have all the time in the world…”

Chanyeol smiled. “If it’s what you want, we can, of course.”

Baekhyun nodded. “Please.”

Chanyeol reached down the bed and picked up the foil packet, handing it to Baekhyun.

“Will you put it on me?” He was definitely doing it because he knew Baekhyun would blush like crazy.

Baekhyun nodded, taking it with shaking hands.

Chanyeol knelt beside him gesturing for him to go on. Baekhyun opened the small packet carefully and took Chanyeol’s cock in his hands.

“L-like this?” Baekhyun asked, although he knew exactly how to put on a condom—despite never having done it in his life.

Chanyeol nodded in encouragement.

He rolled it down Chanyeol’s dick and picked up the lube beside him. Chanyeol was sporting a semi but Baekhyun wanted him hard.

As Chanyeol watched with lust filled eyes, Baekhyun stroked his cock slowly, a bit inexperienced. Chanyeol was so much bigger and thicker than he was, he was almost just giving him a hand job out of curiosity for what it would be like if his cock was like that.

He could easily get addicted to Chanyeol’s cock. Baekhyun didn’t want to stop, Chanyeol was releasing small groans, and his dick was already growing harder.

“I like your cock,” Baekhyun said shyly.

Chanyeol chuckled. “I’m glad baby. It’s all yours...”

Baekhyun gave him some more leisurely strokes, the way he knew felt _really_ good, and listened to Chanyeol’s little moans.

“I could do this all day,” Baekhyun said and Chanyeol replied with a smile.

“That would be amazing,” Chanyeol said.

“One day…” Baekhyun muttered.

“But today…?” Chanyeol left the question hanging.

“I’m ready,” Baekhyun said with confidence.

Chanyeol leaned down to whisper in his ear. “Then flip over for me baby, on your hands and knees.”

Baekhyun blushed and complied, exposing his wet asshole for Chanyeol.

He heard a groan from Chanyeol followed by a hand groping his ass cheek. “God you’re so cute, but seeing you like this…”  

Baekhyun wiggled his ass a little for show. “You like it?” He was growing more comfortable to being with Chanyeol, especially after seeing the other was just as turned on.

“Love it,” Chanyeol replied.

Baekhyun had never felt so dirty in his life but he secretly loved it.

“Tell me if it hurts, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun nodded with his face against a pillow. “Go, _please_.”

Chanyeol pushed in slowly, trying not to hurt Baekhyun on his first time.

Baekhyun muffled his moan with the pillow, not wanting Chanyeol to think he was in pain.

Chanyeol paused halfway in, letting Baekhyun adjust to the stretch.

“You can… move,” Baekhyun moaned.

Chanyeol began with painstakingly slow thrusts, drawing out long moans from Baekhyun until he was pushing back against Chanyeol’s dick.

“Anxious?” Chanyeol teased.

“ _Please Chanyeol_ ,” Baekhyun begged.

In the next thrust Chanyeol slammed in all the way.

Baekhyun yelled out loud.

“Did I—”

“ _No_ Chanyeol, don’t stop,” Baekhyun complained.

Chanyeol resumed his thrusts, faster, keeping a steady pace while Baekhyun couldn’t keep his mouth shut, as if he hadn’t even cum already.

“ _So tight_ ,” Chanyeol moaned. “Baby you feel so good.”

Chanyeol wrapped a hand around Baekhyun’s stomach and pulled him up, so that his back was pressed up against Chanyeol’s chest while he thrust into Baekhyun.

Chanyeol’s hand ran across his Baekhyun’s chest, stopping at his nipple and started play with it, while his other hand stroked his dick.

Baekhyun hadn’t know how sensitive his nipples were until Chanyeol started pinching and twisting them.

“Feeling… good, baby?” Chanyeol grumbled in his ear.

Baekhyun could only moan in reply.

Their deep breathing mixed with the sound of skin slapping skin and their moans sounded so obscene.

Chanyeol’s pace became uneven and Baekhyun knew he was getting close, they both were.

“Chanyeol—I’m— _agh_ —” Baekhyun whined.

“ _Me too_ ,” Chanyeol groaned.

Chanyeol stroked his dick faster, determined to get him off while still pounding into Baekhyun from behind.

Baekhyun started to mewl and squirm, gripping Chanyeol’s arms with enough force to leave bruises.

“Come for me baby,” Chanyeol whispered in his ear. After a particularly hard thrust Baekhyun was spilling all over Chanyeol’s hand and the bed.

“You… _finish_ ,” Baekhyun managed to say amidst his high.

Chanyeol continued pounding into Baekhyun, driving him into oversensitivity until he was spilling into the condom.

Chanyeol wrapped his arms around Baekhyun and pulled him close for a few moments.

“I love you…” Baekhyun whispered.

“I love you too,” Chanyeol said without any hesitation, and planted a sweet kiss on Baekhyun’s neck.

 

.           .           .

 

After a long bath together, they curled up on the bed after Chanyeol had changed the sheets and fell asleep easily, only waking up late at night.

“You hungry?” Chanyeol whispered, voice husky from sleep.

Baekhyun nodded and twisted around in Chanyeol’s embrace. “How about some ramen?”

Chanyeol smiled and peppered him with kisses. “I’ll go buy some okay love?”

“I’ll go with you,” Baekhyun said, taking Chanyeol’s face in his hands and bringing their lips together.

“Will you wear one of my hoodies?” Chanyeol teased.

“If I lay my hands on it, you’ll never get it back,” Baekhyun said, playing with Chanyeol’s loose strands of hair. “You’re so cute like this…”

“Not as cute as you,” Chanyeol said, making Baekhyun giggle. “Let’s go get some ramen so we can come right back here.”

Baekhyun nodded and they both go out of bed.

Chanyeol gave him a hoodie and a pair of sweatpants similar to what he got for himself and they walked to the convenience store nearby hand in hand.

There were a few people in the store, unsurprising considering it was 2 a.m., but no one paid them heed as they stayed close together and walked to the ramen isle.  

“Spicy?” Chanyeol asked, picked up a packet of instant ramen.

 Baekhyun shook his head slightly.

“Right, you don’t like spicy, I’ll remember,” Chanyeol said, squeezing Baekhyun’s hand in assurance. “Beef or chicken then? Or kimchi?” Chanyeol asked.

“Whatever you like,” Baekhyun said.

“We’ll get one of each then,” Chanyeol said, taking several packets of ramen.

After paying for their ramen they strolled around the apartment for a while, staring at the sky, kissing, talking.   

Back in Chanyeol’s apartment, Baekhyun sat on the counter watching Chanyeol prepare the noodles, staring at his muscular back with the hoodie now gone.

“You like them softer or harder?” Chanyeol asked.

“Softer,” Baekhyun replied.

Chanyeol chuckled. “Just like you.”

Baekhyun felt his cheeks heat up. He couldn’t control his blush whenever he was around Chanyeol.

A few more minutes and Chanyeol was pushing a bowl of ramen towards Baekhyun.   
“So pretty,” Baekhyun said, admiring Chanyeol’s work. “Scallions, egg, some kimchi… wow. You should work for Soo.”

 “Thank you love." Chanyeol gave Baekhyun’s cheek a kiss. "Dig in.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehehehehehe 
> 
> That was all pure filth lol  
> Definitely not my best piece of smut, and definitely not the fastest I've ever written but I think it's really nice in its own way <3
> 
> Because *clap* we *clap* need *clap* more *clap* cute *clap* ramen *clap* scenes


	18. He Knew Better

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm an idiot who forgets to post two days in a row *smh* I am so sorry guys  
> This is a short but eventful chapter, one of the very last ones.

Baekhyun woke up with his face lying on something hard and warm, and he could hear a constant, soft _thump thump thump_. He felt a kiss pressed to the top of his head and he slowly blinked his eyes open, realizing he was lying on Chanyeol’s chest, listening to his heartbeat.

Chanyeol’s arms were wrapped around Baekhyun’s waist, and their feet were tangled together. He was so warm and cozy, safe, and somehow it felt so much more intimate than sex.

“Good morning love,” Chanyeol said, voice husky from sleep.

Baekhyun smiled and looked up at his boyfriend. “Good morning.”

“You want breakfast?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun shook his head. “I wanna stay here, like this.”

Chanyeol smiled and tightened his hold around Baekhyun. “Whatever you want love,” he said. “Did you enjoy last night?”

“Best night _of my life_ ,” Baekhyun replied.

Chanyeol’s chuckled reverberated in his chest. “I’m glad. Are you sore?”

“A little…” Baekhyun admitted, “but I don’t mind.”

Chanyeol planted another kiss on Baekhyun’s head. “Next time it won’t hurt as much…”

“When is _next time_?” Baekhyun teased, intentionally rubbing his hips against Chanyeol’s.

“Soon,” Chanyeol said, “when you don’t have to go to school the following day.”

Baekhyun groaned. “ _School_ … I don’t wanna go to school,” he complained.

“How about I pick you up a little early today then? We go to a little café nearby, drink some coffee, eat a croissant…?” Chanyeol suggested.

Baekhyun sighed. “Sounds amazing…”

“Do you want me to take you? We can stop somewhere on the way to eat breakfast,” Chanyeol said, planting a third kiss on his head.

“No, it’s fine. I have to go home and deal with my parents…”

Chanyeol stayed quiet.

“I’ll let you know how it goes,” Baekhyun said, starting to lift himself up from the warmth of Chanyeol’s chest.

“Are you sure baby? I can take you, I don’t mind,” Chanyeol insisted.

“Chanyeol, it’s fine,” Baekhyun assured him, “really.” He swung his feet over the edge of the bed and sat beside Chanyeol.

“Anything happens you call me, okay?” Chanyeol warned.

Baekhyun nodded. “Of course.” He leaned down and pressed a kiss to Chanyeol’s lips. “I’ll see you later okay?”

“Wait, let me walk you out,” Chanyeol said, already sitting up.

Baekhyun pushed him down with the palm of his hand. “No, you stay. Sleep some more, I’ll text you when I get home.”

Chanyeol nodded. “Drive safe, okay?”

“I will.” Baekhyun kissed Chanyeol one more time then got up and got dressed with borrowed clothes from Chanyeol.

 

.           .           .

 

Constantly glancing between his phone and the speedometer of the car, Baekhyun drove slowly trying to get home safely without being stopped by the police.

He made a left turn like the GPS said then it suddenly started rerouting him.

“What?”

“ _Make a right turn_ ,” came the female voice from the GPS.

He turned right into a narrow street lined with shops.

“ _In 100 meters turn left_.”

“What the hell?” Baekhyun muttered but turned nonetheless. When he looked back down at the GPS the screen said _rerouting_ again.

Baekhyun glanced in the rearview mirror, hoping there weren’t any cars behind him so he could stop and look up directions but there was a giant SUV riding his ass.

“What the fuck dude?” he muttered and had no other choice but to keep driving and follow the GPS.

 _“In 300 meters turn left then stay to the left to exit onto the highway_.”

“What the fuck? No, no highway—

“ _Turn left then stay to the left to exit onto the highway_.”

“ _Stop_!” Baekhyun tried to turn off the GPS while keeping his eyes on the road—not that he was a good enough driver to do that. He looked into the rearview mirror and found the same SUV right behind him.

Baekhyun yelled out in frustration and ended up dropping his phone on the floor.

The one second it took him to reach down to get it, he somehow drove into a dead end. He slammed on the break before he could crash his father’s sleek black car into a concrete wall.

He let out a sigh and switched the car to park. He ran a hand through his hair trying to calm himself, only to notice the same black SUV parked right behind him. Baekhyun felt a twinge of fear for a second and debated whether he should step out of the car or not.  Remembering his phone was still on the floor, he reached down to get it. The display was cracked and the screen was frozen on the stupid GPS map. “Great… just _great_ …” he muttered.

A knock on his window made him jump and almost drop his phone again. There was a man standing beside his car, not much older than Chanyeol probably, looking at Baekhyun. With a gulp, Baekhyun lowered the window halfway.

“Uh—can I help you?” Baekhyun asked, figuring it was the right thing to say.

“I think you’re the one that needs help…” the man said, and something about his tone made Baekhyun feel uneasy. “Your back tire is almost on the ground.”

“What?” Baekhyun eyed the dashboard for any indication that he had a flat tire but there wasn’t one, as far as he was concerned. “A-are you sure?” Baekhyun asked the man.

“Of course, come and see for yourself.”

Baekhyun knew better, he knew he shouldn’t’ve stepped out of the car.

He knew better.

As soon as he stepped out of the car, his tire was perfectly inflated but before he could even turn around and complain to the man, he felt a sharp pain in the back of the head and then everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As this story slowly comes to a close, I would like to thank everyone who has been reading and commenting, you guys are the reason I procrastinate with every possible thing in my life just to write and I don't regret it a single bit <3  
> Thank you for all the loveeee  
> There will be two more chapters plus an epilogue yay <3


	19. He's Been Kidnapped

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to build some more anticipation before I posted a new chapter...
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> ***sounds like excuses to me****

“Have you guys seen Baekhyun today?” Kai asked as he and Sehun sat down at their table.

Minseok and Jongdae exchanged a look. “No,” Minseok said, “someone call him—or text him.”

“Call him,” Sehun said, “yesterday I saw someone that was _not_ Chanyeol pick him up.”

“Why didn’t he tell me anything?” Minseok muttered, pulling out his phone. He dialed Baekhyun’s number but it didn’t even ring before he was directed to an automated response.

“Straight to voicemail,” he said.

“Try texting him,” Kai suggested.

Minseok did so and waited for a reply but there was none.

“He might be with Chanyeol,” Jongdae said.

“I don’t know… if Sehunie said he went home with a different bodyguard something is definitely not right,” Kai said.

Minseok’s hand went to his mouth. “Oh my god… what if his parents found out?”

An uncomfortable silence passed between them.

“Let’s just wait,” Jongdae said, breaking the silence, “his phone might just be dead or something and he overslept, or… he’s at Chanyeol’s.”

Minseok raised an eyebrow.

“What? You never know…”

“How much stamina do you think they have?” Sehun muttered, earning him a smack from his boyfriend, “Ouch! I’m just saying… they wouldn’t be, you know, _doing it_ for this long—it’s almost 1 in the afternoon.”

“We need to get a hold of him, something’s wrong,” Minseok said, worries starting to flood his mind.   
“Minnie, calm down,” Jongdae said, placing a soothing hand on his shoulder.

“No Dae, I seriously have a bad feeling about this, you don’t understand,” Minseok insisted. “I’m calling—”

The school bell cut him off mid-sentence and students began rushing around trying to get to class.

“Just wait a little more,” Kai suggested, “maybe he’ll reply.”

Minseok bit his lip. Something in his gut was telling him something wasn’t right, and he didn’t want to ignore it, but his friends were giving him looks that told him he was being paranoid.

 

.           .           .

 

“Damnit! Where is he?” Junmyeon yelled, his wife shrinking back in fear at his voice.

“Junie, honey, _please_ , calm down,” she pleaded.

He looked over at her with rage-filled eyes. “I told him to obey me and he just _left_ —how dare he insult me like that?”

His wife stayed quiet this time.

“And all for what? That damn Park Chanyeol—I knew it wasn’t a good idea to hire him. But how was I supposed to know that my son…” his voice cracked, “my own son… liked… _men_?”

“Junie, we were blind not to have realized it,” his wife began, “but he’s still our _son_ , we should love him no matter what.”

Junmyeon took deep breaths, trying to contain his rage. Baekhyun hadn’t answered any of his calls since he left, and he’d already called the school to check if he’d attended but he hadn’t. A part of him was worried about his son, worried that something happened, and a smaller part of him found relief that he was likely with Park Chanyeol, safe. But the other part of him hated that, hated that his son was the way he was. He wanted to change that, wanted to make him love a woman, who would bear his children and carry on the family name.

Yet, as a father, all he wanted for his child was for him to be happy. And, he looked happy with Chanyeol, or so his informants had told him.

“Junie, maybe you should call—”

“ _No_ ,” Junmyeon snapped, already knowing who his wife would suggest, “I will not speak to him.”

His wife let out a deep breath and straightened herself, gone was her scared and coward demeanor. “ _Kim Junmyeon_ , knowing what I know, I fear for my son’s well-being, so tuck away your pathetic ego and call Park Chanyeol so that I can be assured that my son is safe.”

His wife had never spoken to him like that, had never stood up in an argument, Junmyeon was shocked into obliging.

The phone rang several times before the front door burst open and Park Chanyeol stepped through.

“Where’s Baekhyun?” he demanded.

“I should be asking you the same thing,” Junmyeon hissed.

“He said he was coming to figure things out with you,” Chanyeol said.

Junmyeon was beginning to realize the scope of the situation. This was no longer about secret relationships and pity fights.

Baekhyun was missing.

“You were the last one that saw him,” Junmyeon snapped.

Chanyeol began looking around in panic, and tears filled his eyes.

“It’s the Seoul Serpents isn’t it?” he whispered, and Junmyeon almost hadn’t heard him.

“What did you say?” he asked, just to make sure he’d heard him right.   
“The Seoul Serpents,” Chanyeol repeated. “The ones who killed my little sister and your other son Baekbom.”

“How do you know about them?” Junmyeon asked.

“I’ve been studying Baekbom’s case and comparing it to my sister’s. They don’t just kill for no reason—they had a reason, and you know that.”

“Don’t speak of things you know nothing about!” Junmyeon yelled.

Chanyeol didn’t so much as flinch. “Your conscience is heavy with guilt. Baekbom lost his life because of you—” Junmyeon opened his mouth to protest but Chanyeol went on, “—if we don’t set our differences aside now and find Baekhyun—”

Junmyeon’s phone began ringing inside his jacket pocket, and he pulled it out immediately hoping it was a call from Baekhyun.

He felt a weight lift off his chest when he saw that it was a video call from Baekhyun, hitting the answer button immediately.

The screen was black and there was silence, Junmyeon was so focused on his phone he belatedly noticed that Chanyeol was now standing beside him.

“It’s been a while Myeon…” came a voice from the other end of the line.

The cover over the camera was removed and the first thing he saw were the cuts on Baekhyun’s face.

He was kneeling on a dirty floor, hands and arms bound by a thick brown rope, his hair was messy and dirty, there was a gag wrapped around his mouth, and his cheeks were streaked with tears.

“What have you done to my son?” he yelled.

“Not much… _yet_ ,” the same voice said.

A hand gripped Baekhyun’s hair and yanked hard on it, so he was directly facing the camera. The barrel of a gun was shoved onto the side of his face, but the person holding it wasn’t visible in the frame.

“Don’t you dare touch him!” Chanyeol was the one to yell.

“Is Park Chanyeol worried about his precious little boyfriend? Don’t want him ending up like your sister now do we?” the same evil voice said, followed by a terrifying and cruel laugh.

“What do you want?” Junmyeon demanded.

“I want what was owed to me _three years ago_. I warned you that there would be consequences and you ignored me—don’t make me say it again,” the man replied.

Junmyeon’s heart tightened in his chest, he didn’t want to experience the loss of another son ever again. “Whatever you want, just don’t harm him— _please_.” His voice broke as tears filled his eyes. The more he looked at Baekhyun in that state the more desperate he grew.

“100 billion Won. In cash. Midnight tonight. You know where.” And the call ended.

Junmyeon felt like he couldn’t breathe, he gripped Chanyeol’s arm as a way to ground himself, and tried to think clearly.

Chanyeol violently yanked his arm free and began marching towards the door.

“Chanyeol wait!” Junmyeon’s wife called. “It won’t do you any good to go out looking for him.”

“I’m not going to look for him, I’m going to _find_ him,” Chanyeol grumbled and continued walking.

Junmyeon’s wife moved quickly from where she was standing beside Junmyeon to Chanyeol and pulled him back with two hands around his arm.

“They’re dangerous Chanyeol, if things don’t go their way they _will_ harm him, please Chanyeol, just wait,” she pleaded.

The look in Chanyeol’s eye softened. “Okay…”

She smiled at him. “We’ll get him back, okay?”

He nodded.

.           .           .

 

Minseok couldn’t bring himself to focus in class, all he could think about was Baekhyun. He just _knew_ something was wrong. Baekhyun was from the 20th century it seemed because he was never with his phone but he always made sure to tell Minseok where he was or where he was going, and the fact that it had been over 12 hours that he hadn’t heard from Baekhyun was strange.

He asked that he be excused to get a drink of water, hoping it would clear his mind, to which his teacher granted him and he walked out of the classroom, Jongdae giving him a worried look as he did so.

He walked down the halls, passing by 3 water fountains without realizing it, until he bumped into someone when he hadn’t been paying attention to where he was going.

“Woah there Minseok,” came a lightly-accented voice accompanied by a hand on his shoulder.

“I’m sorry Coach Xing,” Minseok mumbled, “wasn’t paying attention to where I was going…”

“It’s okay, what’s on your mind kiddo?” Yixing asked, clearly noticing the distress on his face.

“It’s Baekhyun, he hasn’t been answering my texts or calls—I’m worried. My friends said to just wait but I just can’t help but feel like something’s wrong…”

“I can understand,” Yixing said, he looked to both sides of the hall, making sure it was empty before wrapping an arm around Minseok’s shoulder and steering him away. “I think I can help…”

Minseok walked with Yixing silently to his office where he closed the door and the shut blinds.

“Coach Xing what’s going on?” Minseok asked, starting to panic slightly.

“I have a little skill I like to keep secret but I think it’ll be very helpful right now,” Yixing said, picking up a key from his desk and unlocking one of his cabinets.

Minseok watched with curiosity as Yixing pulled out a bulky laptop and placed it on his desk, gesturing for Minseok to sit beside him on the other side of the desk.

“So you’ve tried calling him and he hasn’t replied to anything?”  Yixing asked as his eyes drifted around the screen, typing what could only be codes that Minseok couldn’t understand. 

“Yeah…” Minseok replied.

“Alright, give me his phone number,” Yixing said.

Minseok rattled off Baekhyun’s number from memory and watched Yixing type it into his computer. More numbers and codes popped up on the screen and Yixing seemed to understand all of them.

“You’re a hacker?” Minseok asked.

“I prefer the term computer genius,” Yixing replied.

_Modest_ , Minseok thought but as long as Yixing was finding Baekhyun he couldn’t complain.

“The phone was last used… hmm… 5 minutes ago. The call was placed from somewhere in Gangnam….” Yixing muttered, eyes still focused on the screen.

“Who was the call to? Can you get a more specific location?” Minseok asked curiously.

“Patience, kiddo. The call was to his father—Junmyeon, right?—and I have an address but there’s nothing at that location,” Yixing informed.

“Oh my god,” Minseok gasped, “something is definitely wrong.”

“Now would be a good time to get a hold of someone,” Yixing said.

Minseok nodded and scrambled for his phone. He didn’t remember why he had Chanyeol’s number but he was grateful that he did.

Chanyeol picked up after three rings.

“Baekhyun!” Minseok blurted.

“He’s been kidnapped,” Chanyeol said.

“Oh my god!” Minseok exclaimed.

Yixing turned to Minseok worriedly.

“He’s been kidnapped,” he said to the coach.

“Put him on speaker,” Yixing ordered, and Minseok didn’t wait to question it.

“Chanyeol, Baekhyun’s last location was in an abandoned Pepero factory in Gangnam, you know which one I’m talking about?” Yixing said. Minseok was stunned by Yixing’s casualty with Chanyeol, he had no idea they knew each other.

“Xing? What the hell? How—”

“Questions I can answer _later_ —Baekhyun’s phone is on but someone _slightly_ more experienced then myself has a hold of it and is making it difficult to track, but I should have the location in less than an hour,” Yixing said.

“Xing you’re amazing,” Chanyeol exclaimed, “Where are you? I’m going there.”

Yixing exchanged a look with Minseok.

“Um… we’ll go to you,” Yixing said.

“I’m at Baekhyun’s house—hurry, _please_ ,” Chanyeol begged.

“We’ll be quick,” Yixing said and hit the end call button before Minseok could say anything else.

“Can I ask?” Minseok said.

“Chanyeol and I met at boot camp,” Yixing supplied, already knowing what Minseok was going to ask.

“But you’re Chinese?” Minseok said.   
“I didn’t say _military_ boot camp,” Yixing said, “Chanyeol chose the combat field I stuck with computers.”

Minseok just hummed.

“Okay, let’s go,” Yixing said, and slammed his computer shut, already getting up from his chair and marching out, leaving Minseok to follow.

They almost crashed into Jongdae at the entrance to the locker room but with amazing reflexes, Yixing extended his arm before Minseok could butt heads with his friend.

“Where have you guys been?” Jongdae asked.

“Long story,” Minseok said, “I’ll explain on the way, come on.” He grabbed Jongdae by the wrist and followed Yixing out to the parking lot.

“Tell Sehun and Kai to meet us at Baekhyun’s house,” Minseok said.

 

.           .           .

 

Chanyeol couldn’t stop pacing in the living room. Ever since getting off the phone with Yixing he grew more and more anxious.

“Chanyeol, _stop pacing_ ,” Junmyeon grumbled.  

Chanyeol was surprised by how calm Baekhyun’s father was acting for someone who’d been raging at a stranger over the phone not long ago.

Chanyeol forced his legs to stay still and took a seat at the couch across from Junmyeon. “How are you not losing your mind right now?”

The look Junmyeon gave him was enough to know that he was _furious_ , but it was a deep and silent fury  
“I…” Chanyeol started, he knew it wasn’t the best time to talk to his possible father-in-law about his love for his son but if Chanyeol didn’t get his mind off of the situation _he_ would really lose it. “I love Baekhyun—I really do.”

Junmyeon moved his gaze to the flower pot placed beside the couch. “I know. That’s what worries me the most,” he said.

“He’s still your son—nothing’s changed. He’s still the sweet, gentle, caring person, he’s always been. Just because he’s—”

“ _Don’t_ say it. I know,” he snapped finally returning his attention to Chanyeol. “I want my son to be happy, that’s all… that’s all I’ve ever wanted.”

“I… like to believe he’s happy,” Chanyeol said, thinking about how much he loved Baekhyun’s adorable smile.  

Junmyeon took a deep breath. “If I spent more time with my son I would’ve known…”

“You still have time to do that,” Chanyeol assured him. It had been the same way with his father, after he found out he reconsidered the relationship he had with his son and tried to do it differently. Chanyeol wanted the same thing for Baekhyun and his father.

“Thank you Chanyeol,” he said quietly, almost whispering.

Chanyeol smiled in reply. For a minute the anxiety and distress had faded away.

A knock on the door had them both looking up, and Chanyeol was the fastest to rush to the door and open it, stepping aside to allow for Yixing and Baekhyun’s two friends to come in.

“Good to see you Xing,” Chanyeol said.

Yixing smiled cutely in return. “Good to see you too Chan,” he replied.

“Can we please skip the pleasantries?” Junmyeon grumbled. “I want my son back.”

“Of course Mr. Kim,” Yixing said, “we’re already on that.”

Baekhyun’s friends bowed to Junmyeon in greeting and took up a seat on the couch close to Yixing.

“Do you have his location?” Junmyeon asked as soon as Yixing opened his computer.

“A few more minutes, I will, sir,” Yixing replied, typing nonstop.

“We’ll find him Mr. Kim,” Jongdae assured him.

Junmyeon replied with the barest of nods.

They were all extremely quiet while Yixing typed on his computer, waiting for some sort of information.

When Yixing finally opened his mouth they all straightened up and listened closely. “They’re still at the abandoned factory,” Yixing informed. “Mr. Kim, I saw that they contacted you from his phone, what did they say?”

Junmyeon looked hesitant but Chanyeol gestured for him to go on. “They said to meet at midnight on the roof of a casino in Gangnam,” Junmyeon said.  

“The best course of action right now would be to wait until then and carefully plan a rescue mission with police backup.”

Junmyeon didn’t look convinced.

“He knows what he’s talking about Mr. Kim,” Chanyeol said, “he was top in the training academy we attended for strategy and computers.”

“I want my son _now_ ,” Junmyeon muttered.

“Mr. Kim, it would be extremely dangerous to go in unprepared, I assume you know who you’re dealing with, so you can understand when I advise you not to do anything reckless,” Yixing said.   
Junmyeon sighed. “You’re right…”

“Alright, Chanyeol—"

The front door burst open and two more of Baekhyun’s friends stepped inside.

“Sick Ducatti outside,” the taller of the two said.

“ _Sehun_ ,” the other whined, “our friend was literally kidnapped and all you can think of is a bike?”

“Chill, babe, I’m just complimenting a nice ride,” the taller, Sehun, said.

“Guys?” Minseok said, “We’re right here.”

“Right, sorry,” the shorter said, and dragged Sehun by the hand towards the couch, taking a seat across from them.

Junmyeon raised an eyebrow at their proximity, and Chanyeol hoped he didn’t comment on it.

“Hi Mr. Kim, I’m Jongin, or you can just call me Kai, and this is Sehun, we’re friends of Baekhyun’s,” one of them said to Baekhyun’s father then he turned to Chanyeol, “it’s nice to finally meet you Chanyeol, unfortunate that it had to be under these circumstances.”

“We can all get to know each other better when we have Baekhyun here with us,” Minseok said, “so can we please just focus?”

“Right, sorry, go on,” Kai said.

Chanyeol didn’t miss the comforting hand Jongdae placed on Minseok’s leg as he whispered something into his ear that made Minseok visibly calm down.

“As I was saying,” Yixing said, returning his attention to Chanyeol, “Chanyeol, please get a hold of your contacts in the police force and ask for three teams.”

Chanyeol nodded, already opening his phone and searching his contacts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Anyways so yeah one more chapter then an epilogue!
> 
> I feel like I need to thank all of you guys who have been reading since the beginning, dealing with my lateness on multiple occasions hehehe but thank you for sticking with me nonetheless


	20. The Moment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This does not apply to this story because I've already finished it but, I just got back to school meaning I will have close to zero free time, and my other fics might--will--be delayed and updated slowly. While I love writing and I hate to make you guys wait, I have to prioritize my studies. Thank you guys for understanding ❤️

His phone read 11:37, it hadn’t changed in the 3 times he’d checked it.

He’d been waiting outside the casino for 20 minutes already but hadn’t received an alert from Yixing saying they were on their way.

Right when he stared to doubt that they wouldn’t show up, his phone lit up with a notification.

_They’re on their way with him shouldn’t be more that 15 minutes_ , Yixing’s message read.

He’d encrypted all of their cellphones so that they wouldn’t be able to be tracked or hacked into—which had taken a few hours on its own—but it was better to stay on the safe side.

Chanyeol kept his eyes peeled for a black luxury car. He figured they would park somewhere discreet because dragging a beaten-up 18-year-old boy out of a car would be difficult to do without drawing attention. The thought alone made Chanyeol sick to his stomach.

Another message from Yixing lit up his phone. _They’re going in through the back, go_.

Chanyeol got out of the car and made his way inside the casino, flashing the bouncer a fat wad of cash before he stopped and questioned Chanyeol.

The casino was overflowing with people, mostly middle-aged men flocked by young girls in skimpy outfits—it repulsed Chanyeol—but he also saw a few younger men, all in expensive suits, sporting shiny Rolex watches.

Chanyeol felt out of place but he knew he blended in well with one of Junmyeon’s fancy suits and borrowed Rolex. He earned a few questioning stares, likely people wondering who he was but no one stopped to question him. He kept a tight grip on the briefcase as he made his way to towards the back, looking for the curtains Junmyeon had described.

The door to the roof was behind red velvet curtains like Junmyeon said they would be, and Chanyeol made his way up discreetly, looking back to check to see if he was being followed.

The first thing Chanyeol saw was a small figure in a purple hoodie kneeling on the floor, a black hood over their head.

“ _Baekhyun_ ,” he whispered.

He willed himself to shift his attention to the men surrounding Baekhyun, guns visible, hard expressions on their faces.

“I must admit, Chanyeol, I am surprised to see _you_ here,” one of the men beside Baekhyun said.

Baekhyun started squirming at the sound of Chanyeol’s name, but after a whack in the head with a barrel of the gun he froze.

“Don’t hurt him,” Chanyeol snapped.

The man chuckled. “It’s cute how worry about him… Did you worry about your sister the same way?”

Chanyeol grit his teeth. “ _Don’t you dare speak of her_.”

“I was the one that shot the bullet, you know… Nice and easy… She’d been so terrified she hadn’t even moved when I pointed the gun at her,” the man went on.

“ _Stop it_ ,” Chanyeol demanded.

“I could do the same to Baekhyun. I’ll spare him the suffering and—”

“ _STOP_ ,” Chanyeol yelled. “I have the money, just hand him over and it’s yours.”

The man gestured to someone standing beside him and they walked over to Chanyeol.

“Baekhyun first,” Chanyeol said, holding the briefcase back.

“That’s not how this works,” the man said, “hand the briefcase over and once the money is counted you can have him.”

It was only when the man brought the gun back to Baekhyun’s head that Chanyeol shoved the briefcase in the awaiting lackey’s hands.

“That’s what I thought,” the man muttered. “Count it,” he ordered his men.

Chanyeol kept his eyes fixed on Baekhyun while they opened the briefcase and took out the stacks of cash.

“Just let me see him,” he asked.

The man yanked off the black hood, revealing Baekhyun’s bruised and scratched face. He still had the gag around his mouth, and his eyes were visibly swollen from crying.

Chanyeol forced himself to stay put. It was still too dangerous.

_Any minute now_ , he thought.

An eternity later, the stacks were counted and back in the briefcase.

“Not a Won missing…” the man muttered. He pointed to Baekhyun’s bound hands behind his back with the barrel of the gun and he was untied and ungagged.

Before he could even take a shaky step forward, Chanyeol was already running to him, carrying him in his arms.

“Here’s what’s going to happen now,” the man said, turning back to Chanyeol once he’d stepped back. “We’re going to walk out of here with the briefcase—if anything goes wrong, he’s dead.” His eyes moved to a man standing in the shadows, revolver gleaming in the moonlight. “He’s my best shot. I wouldn’t try anything if I were you.”

Chanyeol gulped. _Please let this work_ , he prayed.

The man and his minions made their way to the exit of the roof, and Chanyeol only turned his attention back to Baekhyun once he’d lost sight of them.

“ _Baekhyun_ ,” he whispered, eyes already filling with tears. He hated seeing Baekhyun so broken and hurt.

Baekhyun tightened his grip on Chanyeol’s shirt. “ _Chanyeol_ ,” he whispered, and the tears started pouring out.

Chanyeol planted a kiss on his head and held him tighter. “You’re safe, you’re safe, you’re safe,” Chanyeol kept repeating until Baekhyun’s sobs quieted. “Everything will be over soon, I promise,” Chanyeol whispered.

Baekhyun whimpered. “I want to go home.”

“Soon, I promise,” Chanyeol said. The last signal he needed was a vibration in his pocket with a message from Yixing. “I’m going to set you down real quick, okay?” Chanyeol whispered in his ear, making sure the sharpshooter didn’t hear him.

Baekhyun nodded lightly.

As soon as Chanyeol’s arm was no longer supporting Baekhyun, he already had his gun in his hand and he was firing at the sharpshooter.

Baekhyun flinched from the loud noise and looked up to see what Chanyeol had done.

“Chanyeol what—”

“Hey, hey,” Chanyeol whispered, shifting his body so Baekhyun wouldn’t see the sharpshooter’s dead body. “Let’s go home.”

Baekhyun didn’t protest.

Chanyeol scooped him up in his arms and walked down the stairs to the first floor, where all hell had broken loose.

Police officers were everywhere, men had handcuffs around their wrists, girls had blazers over their shoulders to hide their exposed skin, there was money lying everywhere.

Chanyeol ignored the chaos and walked straight out the door.

As soon as Junmyeon saw Chanyeol walk out the doors, he ran to him, worried eyes scanning Baekhyun from head to toe.

Baekhyun burst into tears at the sight of his father and let go of Chanyeol to throw his arms around his father.

Junmyeon caught him firmly before he was able to tumble to the floor, protectively wrapping his arms around Baekhyun.

“I love you dad,” Baekhyun sobbed.

“I love you too Baekie, I—” Junmyeon’s voice cracked and tears rolled down his cheek, “I don’t want you to leave, I want you at home. You—you can be with Chanyeol.” He looked up and Chanyeol and smiled despite his tears, “I… I just want you to be happy.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaand that's it ladies and gents! This story has come to a close at long last! I will save my whole shpwel to the next chapter (a lovely epilogue) but for now I'll just say thank you to everyone who has been reading and commenting, it makes it worth it to continue writing, doing what I love ❤️
> 
> Also, I just wanted to say (repeat) that I've just got back to school therefore I will have close to zero free time, and while this story is already finished and requires no more updates other than one more chapter, others might--will--be delayed and updated slowly.  
> Sorry for the slight inconvenience but thank you for the patience my lovelies ❤️


	21. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is. For once on time. The final chapter to end it all. (In a good way)  
> Enjoy!

_2 months later_

 

Chanyeol waited for Baekhyun in the café across the street from the tall building, patiently sipping on a latte while scrolling through his Instagram. He already had 10 pictures with Baekhyun on his profile and they’d only been dating for two— _amazing_ —months. His favorite was one they’d taken on a mini vacation to Jeju island with Baekhyun’s parents. In the picture, they were sitting in the sand, Chanyeol’s arm around Baekhyun’s sunburned shoulders, while they stared at the sunset. Baekhyun’s mom had been the one to take the picture without them noticing, and it perfectly captured their love, in Chanyeol’s opinion.

Baekhyun’s parents had become so accepting of him after seeing how happy he was, and Chanyeol felt very included in their family, his mother even insisted in him calling her mom—but he still got shy about it.

Seeing that it was exactly 4 p.m. Chanyeol put his phone away and glanced at the building across the street waiting for Baekhyun to walk out.

Not even a minute later a tiny ball of sunshine was skipping through the doors, frantically waving at Chanyeol as soon as he saw him.

Chanyeol met him outside in front of the café, holding out his arms so Baekhyun could jump onto him and give him a hug.

“I’m done Yeolie—she said I’m all better,” he whispered in his ear.

“That’s great baby,” Chanyeol said, placing a kiss on Baekhyun’s head. His hair was back to it’s hazelnut brown—Chanyeol’s favorite color so far if he was being honest—and he was sporting one of Chanyeol’s hoodies, that way almost 5 times too big for him.

“Kiss kiss,” Baekhyun said, pouting his lips.

Chanyeol smiled at his boyfriend’s antics and leaned down to place his lips on Baekhyun’s.

They kissed in the middle of the sidewalk, careless of who was watching.

“Why don’t we go eat some ice cream to celebrate?” Chanyeol suggested.

Baekhyun nodded enthusiastically. “You know me so well.”

“Then let’s go,” Chanyeol said, interlacing their hands. They walked a few blocks to a nearby ice cream shop and Chanyeol ordered for them, already knowing what Baekhyun wanted.

Sitting down on a bench in front of the shop, they ate their ice cream in a comfortable silence.

“Can we go shopping for new clothes for tonight?” Baekhyun asked.

“Anything you want baby,” Chanyeol said, finishing the last of his ice cream.

Baekhyun smiled and planted a cool kiss on his cheek.

“Let’s go!” Baekhyun exclaimed, and they began walking down the street back to the car.

 

.           .           .

 

Chanyeol’s parents had gotten to the restaurant first, waiting at the table that had been reserved for them when everyone else arrived.

Junmyeon greeted Chanyeol’s father warmly, like they were friends since childhood—which they were, Baekhyun had discovered. Chanyeol’s and his father met in primary school, and were inseparable all the way through college until they were involved with the Seoul Serpents. After Chanyeol’s father lost his daughter because of the Serpents, they drifted apart, but were reunited when Chanyeol revealed to his father that he was dating Baekhyun. One reunion was all it took for them to become best friends once more.

So in the end it all worked out well.

As soon as Baekhyun’s parents arrived at the restaurant, almost at the exact same time as Baekhyun and Chanyeol, they dived into a conversation about the recent trade agreements between China and Korea, leaving the women and the couple out of the conversation to talk amongst themselves.

They were only waiting for Kyungsoo to join them, though he should’ve already been there since it was his restaurant after all.

After a few minutes of light conversation, Kyungsoo approached them, with a very tall man by his side. Junmyeon and Chanyeol’s father paused their conversation and turned their attention to Kyungsoo.

“Soo! You made it!” Baekhyun exclaimed.

Kyungsoo smiled. “I want to introduce someone to all of you…”

Baekhyun looked between Kyungsoo and the other man, curious as to who he was.

“This is Kris…” Kyungsoo hesitated for a moment, “my fiancé.”

Junmyeon looked surprised for a second, but his expression turned to a smile and he got up to formally greet Kyungsoo’s fiancé.

“I’d been wondering why he never said anything about that ring around his finger,” he said, shaking Kris’s hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you.”

“Likewise, Mr. Kim,” he replied politely.

“I’m happy for you Kyungsoo,” Junmyeon said, “and a tad offended that I didn’t know about this sooner.”

Baekhyun jumped up from his seat and wrapped his arms around Kyungsoo. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me,” he muttered, “but I’m still so happy for you!”

Kyungsoo chuckled. “Thanks Baekie…”

Everyone else got up to congratulate Kyungsoo and formally introduce themselves to his fiancé.

Dinner was ordered shortly after and everyone fell back into comfortable conversation with one another.

Baekhyun and Chanyeol couldn’t stay more than one minute without touching one another, and it didn’t go unnoticed by their mothers and Kyungsoo, resulting in endless teasing.

Baekhyun tried hiding his blush by burying his face in Chanyeol’s shoulder but that just made the mother hens coo more.

The night went on forever, Baekhyun never wanting it to end. He was surrounded by the people he loved, who accepted him for who he was.

Baekhyun didn’t want it any other way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, my first official ChanBaek slowburn fic has concluded!  
> Alright, here's the mushy stuff... thank you from the very bottom of my heart, to everyone who has been reading and commenting, sharing your thoughts and feelings. It has been so amazing, all of the feedback I have received made me want to continue writing this story. Writing is my safe space and all of you have made this space so comfortable and welcoming that I couldn't have asked for anything better.   
> Love you all! Please look forward to more upcoming fics!   
> xoxo SuperBaekTrash ❤️

**Author's Note:**

> Leave all your thoughts and feelings below! I love reading feedback from you guys and I'll make it my priority to respond!  
> I'd love to chat so hit me up on twitter @superbaektrash


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